Difference between revisions of "Stuart Polak"

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(Replace the "Register of Lords' Interests could not be opened" caveat with his nine registered Lords entries (Members API RegisteredInterests, 11 November 2026); additive (base rev 307919))
 
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'''Stuart Polak''' has been the director of [[Conservative Friends of Israel]] since 1989 and is partner in two Westminster based lobbying firms - [[The Westminster Connection]] (TWS) and [[Kesher Strategy]], as a result of which he is known as an 'effective behind-the-scenes lobbyist.'<ref name=jc>Jewish Chronicle, [http://www.thejc.com/jc-power-100/the-jc-power-100-numbers-81-90 "The JC Power 100: Numbers 81 - 90"], Jewish Chronicle, 5 September 2008, accessed on 16 December 2010</ref>He is listed in the ''Telegraph's'' "The Right's 100 Most Influential" in 2007<ref>Telegraph, [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1564854/The-Rights-100-Most-Influential-50-26.html "The Right's 100 Most Influential: 50-26"], ''Telegraph,'' 2 October 2007</ref> and the "Top 100 most influential Right-wingers" 2010,<ref name=tele2010>Telegraph, [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/conservative/8037201/Top-100-most-influential-Right-wingers-100-76.html "Top 100 most influential Right-wingers: 100-76"], ''Telegraph,'' 3 October 2010</ref> as well as the ''Jewish Chronicle's'' "Power 100" in 2008,<ref name=jc>Jewish Chronicle, [http://www.thejc.com/jc-power-100/the-jc-power-100-numbers-81-90 "The JC Power 100: Numbers 81 - 90"], Jewish Chronicle, 5 September 2008, accessed on 16 December 2010</ref>
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{{short description|'''Conservative life peer (Lord Polak, 2015); director of Conservative Friends of Israel from 1989, now Honorary President; lobbyist'''}}
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{{Infobox person
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| name        = Stuart Polak
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| image      = Lord_Polak_2025.jpg
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| image_size  = 220
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| caption    = Official House of Lords portrait, 2025
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| occupation  = Member of the House of Lords; lobbyist; Honorary President of Conservative Friends of Israel
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| known_for  = Director of Conservative Friends of Israel from 1989; life peer (Baron Polak) since 2015
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}}
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'''Stuart Polak''', Baron Polak CBE (known as '''Lord Polak'''), is a Conservative member of the House of Lords. Parliament lists him as a member since 2 October 2015.<ref name="SP-Bio">UK Parliament, [https://members-api.parliament.uk/api/Members/4547/Biography Members API: Lord Polak (member 4547), biography], and [https://members-api.parliament.uk/api/Members/4547/Synopsis synopsis], accessed 11 November 2026.</ref> Conservative Friends of Israel's history page says that he became its Director after the death of [[Michael Fidler]] in 1989, "was later awarded a CBE and life peerage by David Cameron" and "now serves as CFI's Honorary President".<ref name="CFI-History">Conservative Friends of Israel, [https://www.cfoi.co.uk/history/ History], accessed 11 November 2026.</ref>
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In 2008 Polak was the director of [[Conservative Friends of Israel]], a post he had held since 1989, and a partner in two Westminster based lobbying firms - [[The Westminster Connection]] (TWC) and [[Kesher Strategy]], as a result of which he was known as an 'effective behind-the-scenes lobbyist.'<ref name=jc>Jewish Chronicle, [http://www.thejc.com/jc-power-100/the-jc-power-100-numbers-81-90 "The JC Power 100: Numbers 81 - 90"], Jewish Chronicle, 5 September 2008, accessed on 16 December 2010</ref>He is listed in the ''Telegraph's'' "The Right's 100 Most Influential" in 2007<ref>Telegraph, [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1564854/The-Rights-100-Most-Influential-50-26.html "The Right's 100 Most Influential: 50-26"], ''Telegraph,'' 2 October 2007</ref> and the "Top 100 most influential Right-wingers" 2010,<ref name=tele2010>Telegraph, [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/conservative/8037201/Top-100-most-influential-Right-wingers-100-76.html "Top 100 most influential Right-wingers: 100-76"], ''Telegraph,'' 3 October 2010</ref> as well as the ''Jewish Chronicle's'' "Power 100" in 2008,<ref name=jc>Jewish Chronicle, [http://www.thejc.com/jc-power-100/the-jc-power-100-numbers-81-90 "The JC Power 100: Numbers 81 - 90"], Jewish Chronicle, 5 September 2008, accessed on 16 December 2010</ref>
  
 
According to Polak's ''Telegraph'' profile:
 
According to Polak's ''Telegraph'' profile:
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*[[Marsh MacLennan]] - consultant
 
*[[Marsh MacLennan]] - consultant
 
*[[Rotch Property Group]] - consultant
 
*[[Rotch Property Group]] - consultant
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==House of Lords==
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Parliament's Members API lists Lord Polak (The Lord Polak CBE) as a Conservative life peer whose membership of the House of Lords began on 2 October 2015.<ref name="SP-Bio" /> It lists these committee memberships:
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{| class="wikitable"
 +
|+ Committee memberships of Lord Polak, as listed by Parliament
 +
! Committee !! From !! To
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|-
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| EU Justice Sub-Committee || 26 May 2016 || 23 April 2020
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|-
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| European Union Committee || 17 October 2018 || 15 July 2019
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|-
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| EU Security and Justice Sub-Committee || 23 April 2020 || 31 March 2021
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|-
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| Adult Social Care Committee || 19 January 2022 || 21 November 2022
 +
|-
 +
| Domestic Abuse Act 2021 Committee || 27 January 2026 || –
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|}
 +
 +
Parliament's Members API publishes the Register of Lords' Interests entries for each member. It lists 9 entries for Lord Polak, reproduced below as published.<ref name="SP-Lords">UK Parliament, [https://members-api.parliament.uk/api/Members/4547/RegisteredInterests Members API: Lord Polak (member 4547), registered interests], accessed 11 November 2026.</ref> The register's own dates are given for each entry; Powerbase has not checked the entries against any other source.
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{| class="wikitable"
 +
|+ Entries for Lord Polak in the Register of Lords' Interests, as published through Parliament's Members API (retrieved 11 November 2026)
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! Category !! Entry as registered !! First registered !! Last amended
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|-
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| Category 1: Remunerated employment etc. || Director, Markham Services Limited (member’s company owned 50% by member and 50% by wife) (clients are registered below) || 22 October 2015 || 30 April 2026
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|-
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| Category 1: Remunerated employment etc. || Senior Consultant, Marsh Ltd (insurance, reinsurance, employee benefits advice, brokerage and associated services) || 22 October 2015 || 23 February 2026
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|-
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| Category 1: Remunerated employment etc. || Non-executive Director, Hi Bob (UK) Ltd (human resources) || 12 April 2018 || 5 April 2025
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|-
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| Category 1: Remunerated employment etc. || Senior Consultant, Legacie Contracts Limited (property development) (remuneration is paid to Markham Services Limited) || 21 June 2022 || 7 April 2025
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|-
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| Category 1: Remunerated employment etc. || Advisor, MK - Kliniken AG (health and care) (remuneration is paid to Markham Services Limited) || 12 December 2025 || 23 February 2026
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|-
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| Category 1: Remunerated employment etc. || Consultant, Orient Property Inc (civil and industrial infrastructure development company) (remuneration is paid to Markham Services Limited) || 14 September 2026 || –
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|-
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| Category 2: Shareholdings etc. (a) || Markham Services Limited (member’s company owned 50% by member and 50% by wife) || 22 October 2015 || 5 April 2025
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|-
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| Category 5: Overseas visits || Visit to Israel and West Bank, 4–9 October 2026, as part of fact-finding delegation; programme included visits to communities in southern Israel affected by 7 October 2023 attacks and Israel–Hamas war; meetings with Israeli and Palestinian officials and politicians, Palestinian civil society representatives, NGOs and British Ambassador to Israel; flights, accommodation and hospitality paid by Cedarsoak Ltd || 14 October 2026 || –
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|-
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| Category 5: Overseas visits || Visit to Manama, Bahrain, 30 October–2 November 2026, to attend the IISS Manama Dialogue 2026, the regional security summit, as a guest of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Bahrain; flights and accommodation costs paid by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Bahrain || 4 November 2026 || –
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|}
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The entry for the October 2026 visit to Israel and the West Bank says that flights, accommodation and hospitality were paid by Cedarsoak Ltd. Companies House lists a Stuart Polak as a director of a company named Cedarsoak Ltd (09325933), and two other companies in the entries, Markham Services Limited and Hi Bob (UK) Ltd, also share names with companies in the Companies House table below. The register entries give no company numbers, so Powerbase has not confirmed that they are the same companies.
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==Conservative Friends of Israel==
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Companies House lists Polak as a director of Conservative Friends of Israel Limited (08114952), appointed on 21 June 2012.<ref name="CFI-Off">Companies House, [https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/08114952/officers Conservative Friends of Israel Limited (08114952): officers], accessed 11 November 2026.</ref> CFI's history page describes a photograph of CFI's leadership team at its annual business lunch in 2025 as including "Directors Jeremy Brier KC, Julia Bekhor, Adam Cannon and Lord Polak CBE".<ref name="CFI-History" /> See [[Conservative Friends of Israel]].
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===September 2017 meetings===
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In its report on [[Priti Patel]]'s resignation as international development secretary on 8 November 2017, the BBC said of her meetings with Israeli officials in September 2017 (with Gilad Erdan at Westminster on 7 September and with Yuval Rotem in New York on 18 September): "It is thought Lord Polak, honorary president of the Conservative Friends of Israel, was present at both meetings."<ref name="BBC-Patel-2017">BBC News, [https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-41923007 Priti Patel quits cabinet over Israel meetings row], 8 November 2017, accessed 11 November 2026.</ref>
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==Companies House appointments==
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Companies House lists ten appointments for an officer named Stuart Polak, in nine companies (the West Connection Limited appears twice, as director and as secretary).<ref name="SP-CH">Companies House, [https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/officers/shKDy1xmtu2NedXoisz4x6iudQ8/appointments POLAK, Stuart, Lord: personal appointments], accessed 11 November 2026.</ref> The identification with this Stuart Polak rests on the record including Conservative Friends of Israel Limited, whose directors CFI's history page names as including Lord Polak CBE; only company names, roles and dates are reproduced here. Companies House does not check the accuracy of the information filed.
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{| class="wikitable"
 +
|+ Appointments of Stuart Polak listed by Companies House on 11 November 2026
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! Company !! Company status !! Role !! Appointed !! Resigned
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|-
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| Hi Bob (UK) Limited (10568577) || Active || Director (active) || 1 April 2018 || –
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|-
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| Cedarsoak Ltd (09325933) || Active || Director (active) || 25 November 2014 || –
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|-
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| Conservative Friends of Israel Limited (08114952) || Active || Director (active) || 21 June 2012 || –
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|-
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| Markham Services Limited (06777819) || Active || Director (active) || 21 December 2008 || –
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|-
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| The West Connection Limited (06425360) || Dissolved || Director and secretary (both from the same date) || 13 November 2007 || –
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|-
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| The Lubavitch Multi-Academy Trust (11211005) || Active || Director (resigned) || 16 February 2018 || 8 November 2019
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|-
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| Yavneh Foundation Trust (04443267) || Active || Director (resigned) || 24 February 2006 || 31 March 2017
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|-
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| Forum for Jewish Leadership Limited (07453042) || Active || Director (resigned) || 26 November 2010 || 29 July 2012
 +
|-
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| Hertsmere Jewish Primary School Trust (03323105) || Active || Director (resigned) || 24 February 1997 || 27 September 2005
 +
|}
 +
 +
Companies House names "The West Connection Limited", not "The Westminster Connection", and Powerbase has not established that the two are the same business.
  
 
==Contact==
 
==Contact==
  
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'''Facebook:''' http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000116791365
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'''Organisation website:''' [https://www.cfoi.co.uk/ Conservative Friends of Israel]
  
 
==Notes==
 
==Notes==
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[[category:Israel Lobby|Polak, Stuart]]
 
[[category:Israel Lobby|Polak, Stuart]]
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[[Category:Conservative Party|Polak, Stuart]]
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[[Category:British Politician|Polak, Stuart]]

Latest revision as of 14:17, 11 November 2026

Conservative life peer (Lord Polak, 2015); director of Conservative Friends of Israel from 1989, now Honorary President; lobbyist

Stuart Polak

Image 220
Official House of Lords portrait, 2025
Occupation Member of the House of Lords; lobbyist; Honorary President of Conservative Friends of Israel
Known for Director of Conservative Friends of Israel from 1989; life peer (Baron Polak) since 2015

Stuart Polak, Baron Polak CBE (known as Lord Polak), is a Conservative member of the House of Lords. Parliament lists him as a member since 2 October 2015.[1] Conservative Friends of Israel's history page says that he became its Director after the death of Michael Fidler in 1989, "was later awarded a CBE and life peerage by David Cameron" and "now serves as CFI's Honorary President".[2] In 2008 Polak was the director of Conservative Friends of Israel, a post he had held since 1989, and a partner in two Westminster based lobbying firms - The Westminster Connection (TWC) and Kesher Strategy, as a result of which he was known as an 'effective behind-the-scenes lobbyist.'[3]He is listed in the Telegraph's "The Right's 100 Most Influential" in 2007[4] and the "Top 100 most influential Right-wingers" 2010,[5] as well as the Jewish Chronicle's "Power 100" in 2008,[3]

According to Polak's Telegraph profile:

Polak regularly takes leading Conservatives on trips to Israel to educate them. The sceptics invariably return, if not indoctrinated, fully onside. A familiar face around the corridors of the Houses of Parliament, he has done more than most to promote Israel’s case to the right of British politics.[5]

According to his Kesher Strategy bio, Polak has led over 50 delegations of politicians to Israel.[6]

In October 2015, Polak signed a letter in The Guardian along with more than 150 people drawn from the arts and politics. The letter launched Culture for Coexistence, an organisation that opposes the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement.[7]

'General's for hire' allegations

The Sunday Times reported on Polak's double role as a lobbyist and head of Conservative Friends of Israel in October 2012:

The two roles of Stuart Polak, director of Conservative Friends of Israel (CFI), have emerged as a result of this newspaper’s exposé last Sunday of “generals for hire”. He denies any impropriety. As well as heading CFI, a significant party donor, Polak is a key figure in The Westminster Connection (TWC), a political consultancy. Clients of TWC include Elbit Systems, Israel’s defence electronics giant. Retired Lieutenant General Richard Applegate, Elbit’s British chairman, boasted of his own and TWC’s role in lobbying MPs on behalf of Elbit when he was secretly taped for last week’s report. He claimed that the consultancy could gain access “from the prime minister down”. Applegate was seeking an increase in British spending on helicopter safety, one of Elbit's specialisms.[8]

Affiliations

House of Lords

Parliament's Members API lists Lord Polak (The Lord Polak CBE) as a Conservative life peer whose membership of the House of Lords began on 2 October 2015.[1] It lists these committee memberships:

Committee memberships of Lord Polak, as listed by Parliament
Committee From To
EU Justice Sub-Committee 26 May 2016 23 April 2020
European Union Committee 17 October 2018 15 July 2019
EU Security and Justice Sub-Committee 23 April 2020 31 March 2021
Adult Social Care Committee 19 January 2022 21 November 2022
Domestic Abuse Act 2021 Committee 27 January 2026 –

Parliament's Members API publishes the Register of Lords' Interests entries for each member. It lists 9 entries for Lord Polak, reproduced below as published.[10] The register's own dates are given for each entry; Powerbase has not checked the entries against any other source.

Entries for Lord Polak in the Register of Lords' Interests, as published through Parliament's Members API (retrieved 11 November 2026)
Category Entry as registered First registered Last amended
Category 1: Remunerated employment etc. Director, Markham Services Limited (member’s company owned 50% by member and 50% by wife) (clients are registered below) 22 October 2015 30 April 2026
Category 1: Remunerated employment etc. Senior Consultant, Marsh Ltd (insurance, reinsurance, employee benefits advice, brokerage and associated services) 22 October 2015 23 February 2026
Category 1: Remunerated employment etc. Non-executive Director, Hi Bob (UK) Ltd (human resources) 12 April 2018 5 April 2025
Category 1: Remunerated employment etc. Senior Consultant, Legacie Contracts Limited (property development) (remuneration is paid to Markham Services Limited) 21 June 2022 7 April 2025
Category 1: Remunerated employment etc. Advisor, MK - Kliniken AG (health and care) (remuneration is paid to Markham Services Limited) 12 December 2025 23 February 2026
Category 1: Remunerated employment etc. Consultant, Orient Property Inc (civil and industrial infrastructure development company) (remuneration is paid to Markham Services Limited) 14 September 2026 –
Category 2: Shareholdings etc. (a) Markham Services Limited (member’s company owned 50% by member and 50% by wife) 22 October 2015 5 April 2025
Category 5: Overseas visits Visit to Israel and West Bank, 4–9 October 2026, as part of fact-finding delegation; programme included visits to communities in southern Israel affected by 7 October 2023 attacks and Israel–Hamas war; meetings with Israeli and Palestinian officials and politicians, Palestinian civil society representatives, NGOs and British Ambassador to Israel; flights, accommodation and hospitality paid by Cedarsoak Ltd 14 October 2026 –
Category 5: Overseas visits Visit to Manama, Bahrain, 30 October–2 November 2026, to attend the IISS Manama Dialogue 2026, the regional security summit, as a guest of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Bahrain; flights and accommodation costs paid by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Bahrain 4 November 2026 –

The entry for the October 2026 visit to Israel and the West Bank says that flights, accommodation and hospitality were paid by Cedarsoak Ltd. Companies House lists a Stuart Polak as a director of a company named Cedarsoak Ltd (09325933), and two other companies in the entries, Markham Services Limited and Hi Bob (UK) Ltd, also share names with companies in the Companies House table below. The register entries give no company numbers, so Powerbase has not confirmed that they are the same companies.

Conservative Friends of Israel

Companies House lists Polak as a director of Conservative Friends of Israel Limited (08114952), appointed on 21 June 2012.[11] CFI's history page describes a photograph of CFI's leadership team at its annual business lunch in 2025 as including "Directors Jeremy Brier KC, Julia Bekhor, Adam Cannon and Lord Polak CBE".[2] See Conservative Friends of Israel.

September 2017 meetings

In its report on Priti Patel's resignation as international development secretary on 8 November 2017, the BBC said of her meetings with Israeli officials in September 2017 (with Gilad Erdan at Westminster on 7 September and with Yuval Rotem in New York on 18 September): "It is thought Lord Polak, honorary president of the Conservative Friends of Israel, was present at both meetings."[12]

Companies House appointments

Companies House lists ten appointments for an officer named Stuart Polak, in nine companies (the West Connection Limited appears twice, as director and as secretary).[13] The identification with this Stuart Polak rests on the record including Conservative Friends of Israel Limited, whose directors CFI's history page names as including Lord Polak CBE; only company names, roles and dates are reproduced here. Companies House does not check the accuracy of the information filed.

Appointments of Stuart Polak listed by Companies House on 11 November 2026
Company Company status Role Appointed Resigned
Hi Bob (UK) Limited (10568577) Active Director (active) 1 April 2018 –
Cedarsoak Ltd (09325933) Active Director (active) 25 November 2014 –
Conservative Friends of Israel Limited (08114952) Active Director (active) 21 June 2012 –
Markham Services Limited (06777819) Active Director (active) 21 December 2008 –
The West Connection Limited (06425360) Dissolved Director and secretary (both from the same date) 13 November 2007 –
The Lubavitch Multi-Academy Trust (11211005) Active Director (resigned) 16 February 2018 8 November 2019
Yavneh Foundation Trust (04443267) Active Director (resigned) 24 February 2006 31 March 2017
Forum for Jewish Leadership Limited (07453042) Active Director (resigned) 26 November 2010 29 July 2012
Hertsmere Jewish Primary School Trust (03323105) Active Director (resigned) 24 February 1997 27 September 2005

Companies House names "The West Connection Limited", not "The Westminster Connection", and Powerbase has not established that the two are the same business.

Contact

Organisation website: Conservative Friends of Israel

Notes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 UK Parliament, Members API: Lord Polak (member 4547), biography, and synopsis, accessed 11 November 2026.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Conservative Friends of Israel, History, accessed 11 November 2026.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Jewish Chronicle, "The JC Power 100: Numbers 81 - 90", Jewish Chronicle, 5 September 2008, accessed on 16 December 2010
  4. ↑ Telegraph, "The Right's 100 Most Influential: 50-26", Telegraph, 2 October 2007
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Telegraph, "Top 100 most influential Right-wingers: 100-76", Telegraph, 3 October 2010
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Kesher Strategy LLP, ben-tovim.com, accessed 14 October 2012.
  7. ↑ Harriet Sherwood, 'Star authors call for Israeli-Palestinian dialogue rather than boycotts', The Guardian, 22 October 2015, accessed 23 October 2015
  8. ↑ Insight Double role of a top Tory lobbyist: The head of Conservative Friends of Israel also represents an arms firm Sunday Times, 21 October 2012 accessed 28 October 2012
  9. ↑ CFI, "About CFI", Conservative Friends of Israel, accessed on 15 December 2010
  10. ↑ UK Parliament, Members API: Lord Polak (member 4547), registered interests, accessed 11 November 2026.
  11. ↑ Companies House, Conservative Friends of Israel Limited (08114952): officers, accessed 11 November 2026.
  12. ↑ BBC News, Priti Patel quits cabinet over Israel meetings row, 8 November 2017, accessed 11 November 2026.
  13. ↑ Companies House, POLAK, Stuart, Lord: personal appointments, accessed 11 November 2026.
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