News Meeting: Disgraced Tory donor Frank Hester and has levelling-up made any difference?

Tortoise understands that the Conservatives have received an as-yet-undeclared £5 million sum from Frank Hester, the party donor embroiled in a race row. In this episode James Harding is joined by Cat Neilan, Tortoise’s political editor, to discuss her exclusive story.

The Guardian revealed on Monday that at a meeting in 2019, Frank Hester said seeing Diane Abbott on TV made “you want to hate all black women” and that the long-serving MP “should be shot”. He has apologised for the remarks but denied they were motivated by race or gender.

They’re also joined by James Mitchinson, editor of the Yorkshire Post, and journalist and author Peter Pomerantsev.

Plus, Kevin Sullivan and Mary Jordan’s first Postcard from America.

Email: newsmeeting@tortoisemedia.com

Click here to book tickets to The News Meeting Live with Elizabeth Day: https://www.tortoisemedia.com/thinkin/the-news-meeting-live-with-elizabeth-day/

Guests:

• Peter Pomerantsev, journalist and author of How to Win an Information War
• James Mitchinson, editor of the Yorkshire Post
• Cat Neilan, political editor at Tortoise

Host: James Harding, editor-in-chief at Tortoise

Producer: Rebecca Moore

Executive producer: Lewis Vickers

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