Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds apologises over claims he exaggerated solicitor qualification

The business secretary has apologised after it emerged he claimed to be a solicitor - despite not finishing his training.

Jonathan Reynolds faced calls to resign after accusations he described himself as a solicitor on several occasions - including on his LinkedIn page, in the Commons and on an old constituency website that is no longer online.

The term solicitor is protected under law, and people can face prosecution for pretending to be one.

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Mr Reynolds completed a law course and later began to train as a solicitor, but left the programme to run for parliament.

Speaking to journalists on a trip to India, Mr Reynolds said: "I've never presented myself as a qualified solicitor. I have made repeated references to being a trainee solicitor in government press releases, on social media, covered very extensively in the legal press."

The minister added: "For a speech - and I think a tweet or maybe a Facebook post over a decade ago - I don't think it's a huge deal, but I should apologise for that, if anyone has misunderstood that, but I don't think they have."

Downing Street said Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer had accepted the apology offered by Mr Reynolds.

A spokesperson said the minister had written to the prime minister "offering an unreserved apology for inadvertent errors made and he's provided an explanation and an apology that the prime minister has accepted".

Andrew Griffith, the shadow business secretary, renewed calls for Mr Reynolds to resign following his apology, saying he was "making excuses".

He wrote on X: "The Business Secretary lied to Parliament. This is still on the record. He should do the proper thing and resign."

He also criticised the framing of the apology, saying: "This is a 'sorry' from over 4,000 miles away, not a sorry apology."

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Yesterday, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage promised to privately prosecute Mr Reynolds over the claims.

He told a crowd in Cornwall: "Jonathan Reynolds, who's never had a proper job in his life, who tells us he's a solicitor when he's never been qualified, which is a criminal offence.

"I can tell you tonight that there will be a private prosecution brought against Jonathan Reynolds."

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The Solicitors Regulation Authority said last week: "We looked at that issue at the time we became aware of it and contacted Mr Reynolds about the profiles.

"The materials were corrected, and we closed the matter with no further action based on all the evidence we had at the time.

"However, we've now become aware of further information, so we will look at this."

A Labour source suggested previously the reference to Mr Reynolds being a solicitor on social media was "human error" and said Mr Reynolds did not manage the profile.

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