Here's a wrap of Nathan Gill's sentencing at the Old Bailey.

• The ex-Reform UK leader in Wales was sentenced to 10-and-a-half years for taking bribes to make statements in favour of Russia.

• Gill, who had pleaded guilty to eight counts of bribery, was said to have received about £40,000 for giving TV interviews and making speeches while working as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP).

• At the Old Bailey today, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb said Gill's "sophisticated offending" was a "grave betrayal" of the electorate's trust.
• The father-of-seven received instructions from pro-Russia Ukrainian politician Oleg Voloshyn and was compensated with money sourced from Ukrainian oligarch Viktor Medvedchuk.
• He would deliver media comments and even speeches in parliament which were "scripted" by Voloshyn and praised by Medvedchuk.
• He was also asked to "co-opt" other politicians into the scheme.
• The judge said the harm caused by Gill had been "profound", and was "damaging" to people's trust in their politicians.

• The Metropolitan Police said its investigation will continue in order to "establish whether any other individuals have committed offences".

• Reform, the party Gill quit in 2021, condemned his actions and described them as "unforgiveable".

We are closing our live page coverage now, but you can read a full recap of today's story here.

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey has called for an investigation into Russian interference in British politics.

He said in a statement: "A traitor was at the very top of Reform UK, aiding and abetting a foreign adversary. Nigel Farage and his party are a danger to national security."

Police have said Farage is not linked to the case. He has said he had no knowledge of Gill's "shameful activities" and condemned them "in every possible way".

Nathan Gill welcomed Viktor Medvedchuk to the European Parliament in Strasbourg in July 2019 to present a "peace plan" for Ukraine.

The next day, Medvedchuk briefed Russian President Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg.

This clip from the BBC's documentary Bribes, Lies and the British Politician, explains why that meeting in Strasbourg was so significant.

Note: this video is only available to watch in the UK.

In her sentencing remarks earlier, Judge Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb said it was difficult to know the exact amount received by Gill due to the series of smaller transactions and cash involvement.

But she stated he received about £5,000 in respect of each offence, "that could amount to a substantial financial gain" .

Multiplied by each of the eight counts, that comes to about £40,000.

"There was also an expectation of further commercial and/or political gain from the individuals with whom he was working," she added.

Security minister Dan Jarvis says Nathan Gill used his "privileged position in public office" to advance Russia’s interests over the UK’s for money.

In a statement, he calls it "a betrayal of our country, our people, and our national security".

Jarvis adds that "Russia’s hostility and attempts to weaken our democracy will continue to be met by the full force of the law".

Image source, House of Commons

Reaction here from Reform UK, who Gill represented as its leader in Wales for 43 days until he quit the party in 2021.

In a short statement, a spokesman for Reform said: "Mr Gill’s actions were reprehensible, treasonous and unforgivable.

"We are glad that justice has been served and fully welcome the sentence Nathan Gill has received."

“I think from the sentence we've seen here, what we can see is that Nathan Gill has been held absolutely to account for his activity,” the Met Police's Cdr Dominic Murphy told the BBC.

“That should send a strong message to any elected official or anyone in an official capacity who is asked to act on behalf of another government and paid money to do so.

“You do that at significant risk, and you really do need to do your due diligence to make sure that you understand who you're working for and what you're saying is appropriate.”

The investigation against Gill fell to the Metropolitan Police’s counter-terror team because he presented a “potential damage to national security,” Cdr Murphy tells the BBC.

He says Gill was an "extraordinarily willing participant” in the bribery and “knew full well what he was doing and who he was doing it for.”

“If you were a member of the voting public here in this country the last thing you would expect is to vote somebody in who then agrees to take payment to make pro-Russian statements,” he adds.

“That’s absolutely going against the national interest, and this investigation started because we were absolutely convinced there was a national security risk here."

The police investigation into the bribery case is “ongoing,” said Cdr Dominic Murphy, who leads the Metropolitan Police’s counter-terror team.

He said the Met was “working closely with our European partners to understand whether any other individuals have committed offences.”

Image source, Getty Images

Armed Forces minister Alistair Carns has called for Reform to "conduct a full investigation" to "weed out any Russian influence whatsoever in the party".

Speaking to broadcasters, he says: "I've been in the marines for 24 years and to find out that someone has taken money from Russia, I think is an absolute disgrace."

He adds: "To find out someone has taken bribes from the Russian state is absolutely... it's despicable, and I genuinely believe that we need Reform to conduct a full investigation to... weed out any Russian influence whatsoever in the party."

Now that sentencing is complete, we can reveal more details of the counter terrorism probe that brought the Reform politician to court.

A tip-off from the FBI, who searched Oleg Voloshyn’s phone when he visited the USA in 2021, was among several intelligence sources that led the Met Police to investigate Gill.

Police were due to search his house on the morning of 13 September 2021 when they realised he was due to leave the country.

Using special counter-terrorism powers, officers stopped him at Manchester Airport and found messages to the Ukrainian pro-Russia politician Voloshyn on his phone.

Meanwhile at his house, another search found large quantities of cash in different denominations.

In a statement released after the sentencing, Bethan David, head of counter terrorism at the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), said the case "strikes at the heart of democratic integrity".

She says Nathan Gill knew his actions "were wrong" and only stopped when the UK left the EU, "removing him from a position of use for those who sought to influence him".

She also says his sentence represents the "seriousness" of breaching the public’s trust.

Image source, Getty

In her comments before sentencing Gill, the judge outlined the effect of his actions more widely on public trust in politicians and political systems.

"When you say what someone has paid you to say, you are not speaking with sincerity. If it was your genuine opinion, you would not need to be paid for saying it," she said.

"Allowing money to corrupt your moral compass constitutes a grave betrayal of the trust vested in you by the electorate.

"Your misconduct has ramifications beyond personal honour, which is now irretrievably damaged."

The judge sentenced Gill to five-and-a-half years in prison for one count of bribery, and another five years on top of that on a separate count.

She gave concurrent sentences on all further counts - which means they do not add to the total length of sentence.

However, the judge said he would be eligible for release on licence after serving half of the total of 10-and-a-half years in prison.

Meleri Williams
BBC Wales reporter at the Old Bailey

Nathan Gill nodded as the judge delivered the sentence and was immediately taken into custody to begin his time in prison.

Gill is sentenced to 10-and-a-half years in prison after admitting to eight counts of bribery.

Gill is on his feet as the judge is about to deliver the sentence.

"The offending was persistent, rather an isolated lapse of judgement," said the judge.

She added that using other British MEPs who did not know of Gill's financial stake added to the seriousness, with "scant personal mitigation offered".