Fatcat Fujitsu boss and Tory donor linked to disgraced royal Prince Andrew

13 January 2024 , 20:06

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Prince Andrew is facing tough questions over his links with sex fiend Jeffrey Epstein (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

A former Fujitsu chairman has been an associate of disgraced Prince Andrew.

Simon Blagden was chair of trustees at the Duke of York’s Community Initiative, which doled out grants for good causes.

The fatcat was also a major donor to the Tories via his firms and once gave then-PM Boris Johnson a £350 hamper. Mr Blagden, a non-executive chairman, was a director of Fujitsu Telecommunications Europe Ltd, a subsidiary of Fujitsu Services Ltd, from November 2005 to June 2019 and “a member of Fujitsu UK’s leadership team”, the firm said.

Simon Blagden (Huddersfield Daily Examiner)

He met Prince Andrew – who has faced fresh scrutiny over his links with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein recently and vehemently denies any wrongdoing – in 2011 with other charity trustees.

They also met in December 2018, court circular reports show.

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Simon Blagden and Boris Johnson

Andrew’s Community Initiative dissolved in August. Mr Blagden was appointed by then-Digital Secretary Nadine Dorries in 2022 to an £80,000-a-year role two days a week to chair Building Digital UK, an agency in charge of delivering faster broadband and mobile coverage.

Mr Blagden and a representative of Andrew were contacted for comment.

Simon Murphy