DISINFO: UK trying to relaunch Skripal propaganda campaign
SUMMARY
The UK Government seeks to change House of Lords rules in an ostensible bid to stem the flow of “red money” from Russia and China. In reality, given its timing, the measure aims to revive the mainstream media buzz surrounding Russia and help relaunch the UK’s propaganda campaign regarding the alleged poisoning of Yuliya and Sergey Skripal.
RESPONSE
The story advances the recurring pro-Kremlin narratives on the Skripal poisoning and Western Russophobia. The proposed amendments to House of Lords rules, which would require peers to disclose their financial links to Russian entities, is not timed to any specific event. It is part of a two-pronged initiative designed to limit undue financial and political influence of foreign governments. The amendments have been under discussion since at least October 2018 and came on the heels of reports that multiple British peers were "seeking to lobby on behalf of Russian companies with links to the country's government". The same initiative includes the development of an espionage law which has been in the pipeline since Russian spies committed attempted murder on UK soil. Moscow's accusations of the UK Government spreading Skripal-related propaganda is a case projection. Within four weeks of the Skripal poisoning, pro-Kremlin outlets promulgated no fewer than 138 contradictory narratives on the crime.