Downing Street was forced to clarify the Prime Minister’s position after Andy Burnham claimed Russia had interfered in the EU referendum.

Speaking on a podcast, the PM said he was told “clearly” after entering Downing Street that Vladimir Putin’s regime had meddled in the 2016 vote.

The remarks appeared to mark the first time a serving prime minister had publicly acknowledged foreign influence in the referendum, triggering an angry response from Brexit supporters.

Conservatives accused Mr Burnham of promoting “conspiracy theories about the Brexit referendum”.

Nigel Farage went further, accusing him of dishonesty. “The Prime Minister is a liar… there was no Russian interference and the Russia hoax runs all the way through this,” he told a press conference.

Within hours, Downing Street issued a clarification, saying that although Russia may have tried to influence the referendum, the Government did not believe those efforts had worked and maintained that the result was “legitimate”.

The official spokesman said: “Given everything we know about Russia, it is inconceivable they did not seek to use the referendum to their benefit.”

“But… we do not believe they have succeeded.”

The spokesman added: “The PM accepts the referendum result, he is not looking back he is looking to the future.”

He would not say whether Mr Burnham had been shown specific evidence to support the claims of Russian interference.

Earlier, one of Mr Burnham’s own ministers appeared to be attempting to soften the impact of the comments.

Foreign minister Stephen Doughty told LBC: “We know what the result was. I don’t think they’ve succeeded in their efforts to undermine our elections.”

He continued: “The security minister’s been very clear that they’ve attempted but not succeeded, in his evidence that he gave previously on this.”

“But the fact is that they are attempting to interfere, and we all need to be alert to that and respond accordingly.”

The political dispute began after Mr Burnham discussed alleged Russian interference during an appearance on The Rest is Politics podcast.

Mr Burnham said he had discussed Russia’s influence with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz during a visit to Berlin the previous week.

“There is certainly misinformation, disinformation that is emanating from Russia into German politics,” he said.

“But I asked the question coming to Downing Street: was there interference in the 2016 referendum from Russia? And I’ve had the clear answer that yes, there was.”

“I mean, these things are important now to put clearly on the record and help voters in Germany and France understand that some of this politics is instigated via our enemies, namely Russia.”

Mr Burnham said the UK had been ‘too much on the back foot’ and as a result voters had not been ‘informed sufficiently about the extent to which people are seeking to disrupt the political process from overseas’.

DISCOVER MORE: Berkeley Engineer Accused of Poisoning Colleague’s Drink After Camera Footage Emerges

The muddle came as Mr Burnham prepares to reignite Brexit wars in the Commons, after suggesting he could support rejoining the EU.

The PM is set to make a statement to MPs later arguing that cutting ties with Brussels has not ‘delivered what was promised’.

He will tee up a summit with the EU next month, saying failing to seek closer relations would be a ‘dereliction of duty’.

Last week Mr Burnham used his conference speech to reopen the issue of EU membership, despite vowing before taking over from Keir Starmer that he would not.

Mr Burnham told Europhile party activists that he wanted to explore ‘options’ including committing to rejoin in the next election manifesto. He refused to say whether there would need to be another referendum.

Ahead of the Commons returning this afternoon, a No10 source said: ‘Andy understands why some politicians don’t want to face up to the reality that Brexit has not delivered what they once promised.

‘But it is time for a different conversation about what our long-term relationship should be.

‘Sticking with the status quo and not working relentlessly to secure a good deal that boosts growth would be a major dereliction of duty.’

London Mayor Sadiq Khan stepped up his drive for rejoining the EU, saying the ‘case has never been stronger’.

‘The Mayor believes that walking away from our largest trading partner was the biggest act of economic self-harm in the history of our country,’ a spokesman told the Standard. 

‘That is why he wholeheartedly supports the Prime Minister’s ambition to seek a closer relationship with the EU to put our capital, country and continent on course for a more secure and prosperous future.’

He added: ‘The case for rejoining the EU has never been stronger – and Sadiq is clear that immediate steps should be taken to deepen integration with our European neighbours in order to boost our economy and drive-up living standards.’

More in Common polling released today underlined the scale of the challenge facing Mr Burnham in winning public support for any option.

Two-thirds of Brits were adamant a referendum would be needed to rejoin the EU.

But large proportions have tricky red lines, with 45 per cent saying any contributions to Brussels coffers would be unacceptable. Some 40 per cent insisted access to UK fishing waters would be a dealbreaker – even though EU boats have been granted rights even after Brexit.  

Tory frontbencher Andrew Bowie told Times Radio Mr Burnham’s remarks on the referendum were ‘dangerous and divisive’.

‘We know that Russia and indeed Iran and other adversaries of ours around the world have been interfering or seeking to interfere in elections and referendums in this country and indeed within our allies for many, many years,’ he said.

‘But that Brexit referendum was a legitimate vote.

‘People voted in this country in record numbers to leave the European Union. And I actually think it’s very dangerous and divisive of the prime minister to reopen this debate in such an explosive fashion.

‘He knows that the division that was sowed by that referendum, the best way to resolve any lingering issues around that referendum is to get on and make the most of what we have now through Brexit, the best of the trade deals that we have, and indeed the benefits that we can get from being outside the European Union, such as being exempt from Trump’s tariffs that he introduced earlier this year.’

YouTube star Spanian has closed his Newtown kebab shop just eight months after its high-profile launch, and only a week after the Daily Mail reported that the once-hyped venue was struggling to attract customers.

Spanian, whose real name is Anthony Lees, opened the King Street restaurant in January, hoping his enormous online following would translate into a successful business on one of Sydney’s most competitive hospitality strips.

That bet now appears to have unravelled, with the Newtown venue listed as temporarily closed.

Comments posted on Spanian’s social media accounts indicate the restaurant has been shut for roughly a week.

The closure raises new questions about the rapidly expanding Spanian’s Kebabs chain, despite a stream of social media promotions posted since this masthead first revealed the Newtown store was struggling.

The apparent collapse marks a sharp turnaround from January, when crowds filled the restaurant on opening day. Within a few months, however, the initial buzz had faded. The outlet reportedly struggled to bring in customers during busy lunch periods and even Friday-night peak hours, while nearby restaurants continued to attract diners.

Any losses suffered by individual stores, however, may not necessarily be borne directly by Spanian.

The business operates through a franchise model, with franchisees reportedly paying between $250,000 and $350,000 plus GST to trade under the Spanian’s Kebabs brand.

Franchise operators are also responsible for costs such as rent, wages and other ongoing staffing expenses.

With six Spanian’s Kebabs franchises operating, franchise fees alone could potentially have brought in more than $1.5 million for the business empire.

The brand began as a food truck in Haberfield and continues to list Gosford, Kogarah, Newtown and Macarthur Square among its NSW locations. Several food truck sites previously linked to the business, however, have since disappeared from its listings.

Retail expert Barry Urquhart said the Newtown restaurant’s brief run suggested there could be more fundamental issues with the business model.

“Eight months to failure is a very short term, and that suggests there were fundamental flaws in the strategic structure, if there was a strategic structure in the business at all,” he told the Daily Mail.

“Recommendations, referrals and endorsements simply aren’t cutting the mustard at the moment,” he added.

“The presence and influence of influencers has fallen away appreciably.”

Mr Urquhart said Spanian’s popularity may have initially attracted curious customers, but celebrity alone was rarely enough to sustain a hospitality business.

‘There is always a fine line between arrogance and ignorance, and a lot of arrogant people are unknowingly ignorant of the realities of the market forces,’ he said.

‘Most entrepreneurs are terrible at administration. It’s got very little probability of success and sustained growth.’

While Spanian’s public profile resonated with some Australians as a lovable rogue figure in the mould of Ned Kelly or Crocodile Dundee, Mr Urquhart said the novelty appeared to have faded quickly.

‘He did have a profile that was kind of part of the Australian irreverence,’ he said.

Mr Urquhart said the key to surviving beyond the initial burst of curiosity was converting first-time visitors into loyal customers who returned again and again.

‘A very fundamental tenet of successful business is: what is the lifetime value of the customer? It’s not the one purchase. It’s how often they come back,’ he said.

‘The most effective, cost-efficient way to get business is repeat business.

‘Have loyalty and have a preferred brand.’

ALSO READ: Meghan Markle’s New Posts Reveal Hidden Details of Life in Britain

He argued Spanian’s Kebabs had failed to establish a distinctive position in an already crowded fast-food market.

‘He hasn’t got a brand. He hasn’t got recognition. He’s got no market positioning that says he’s famous for it,’ Mr Urquhart said.

‘There seems to be no positioning or presence in the marketplace.

‘He’s just selling kebabs now, and not very good ones.’

Mr Urquhart said Spanian’s apparent troubles came amid brutal conditions for small businesses and the hospitality sector in particular.

He cited a report he had read on Sunday that claimed about 1,000 Australian businesses were closing every day, although many were simply shutting their doors rather than formally collapsing.

‘They’re quietly closing down. They’re not going bankrupt. They’re not going into administration. It’s just this is how tough business is,’ he said.

Mr Urquhart said franchise operators were particularly exposed when they were heavily reliant on a single business or supplier.

‘When you’ve got a franchise business, they’re not freewheeling entrepreneurs. They are freewheeling capitalists with high debt who are dependent upon a single source.’

Scathing comments have continued to flood Spanian’s social media pages, with customers taking aim at everything from the food to stores allegedly failing to open during advertised hours.

‘Got refused service yesterday at Gosford, the girl said she hadn’t been paid in a month,’ one person claimed.

Another complained about the Newtown outlet: ‘helps if u open ur shop when says u open brah. waited 30min at Newtown branch yesterday from scheduled opening time, zero activity inside. travelled all the way frm Adelaide just to be very disappointed and hungry.’

Others took aim at the food, with one declaring: ‘Worse kebabs ever no wonder why they’re closing down,’ while another wrote: ‘His kebabs are a soggy, ranky mess.’

There were also unverified claims that other outlets had shut, with one commenter saying the Macarthur Square store had closed and another claiming: ‘the Warrawong store shutdown permanently.’

The Mail has contacted Spanian’s Kebabs for comment about the Newtown closure, the status of its other outlets, and the allegations raised by customers.

However on social media Spanian hit back at ‘conspiracy theories’ that franchisees had been ‘scammed’ or stores were disappearing because of poor trade, insisting the trucks were simply moving to better locations.

‘They’re trucks, they move. That’s why they’re trucks,’ he said.

Spaian said Parramatta moved to Strathfield and then Brisbane after its lease expired, while Wyong relocated to Gosford.

‘The truck that was in Wyong is the truck in Gosford. The Gosford location is better, more central. They moved there. That’s their right. That’s why it’s a food truck. They move.

‘The truck that was in Wollongong is now being built in Wollongong CBD on the main street. It’s probably our best store. They’ve been building it for two months. They’re very excited.

‘The Penrith location, the land they were on, the cafe next to it, they went bankrupt, so they lost their lease. So they’re finding a better location. Hopefully, it’s going to be in the Penrith Westfield next to the Oporto’s or Nando’s.’

He said Smeaton Grange had moved to Macarthur Square, Uber Eats orders were up, and three more stores were planned, including in Brisbane and Melbourne.

Spanian’s move into hospitality marked another chapter in a dramatic personal transformation.

The influencer-turned-entrepreneur was once Sydney’s poster boy for the working-class youth subculture known as eshays, recognised for tracksuits, bum bags, street slang and a tough image.

Now a businessman and entertainer, he has previous convictions for armed robbery, causing grievous bodily harm with intent and reckless wounding.

His most recent prison sentence was related to operating a criminal drug supply network. In total, he has spent more than 12 years behind bars.

Following his release from prison in 2017, Lees reinvented himself online, eventually launching the hugely successful YouTube series Into the Hood, in which he travels through some of Australia’s and the world’s most dangerous and crime-ridden neighbourhoods.

A California engineer was recorded secretly adding a highly poisonous metal to a female colleague’s water bottle after she endured almost two years of unexplained, debilitating illness.

David Xu, a metallurgist at Berkeley Engineering and Research, even floated the possibility that mold inside their workplace was responsible for her worsening condition.

Behind the scenes, however, Xu was accused of contaminating Rong Yuan’s food and drinking water with cadmium, a toxic heavy metal that can cause serious organ damage and prove fatal.

The alleged poisoning took place from 2017 through 2019. During that period, Yuan was hospitalized several times, suffered violent bouts of vomiting and became convinced that an unknown disease might kill her.

Xu appeared to act as a sympathetic coworker, at one point advising Yuan to remain at home when she was too ill to report to the office.

After Yuan emailed colleagues on November 27, 2018, to say she was vomiting again, Xu replied: “You should work from home until you feel better. No reason to rush in.”

He also offered what appeared to be an explanation for her illness, writing: “I think BEAR is moldy.”

Seven years after Xu’s arrest, Yuan has made public surveillance footage that she says helped expose the person behind her prolonged suffering.

The recordings, obtained by the San Francisco Standard, came from a concealed camera Yuan bought on Amazon after concluding that someone might be intentionally poisoning her.

In footage dated February 11, 2019, Xu can be seen walking toward Yuan’s desk and reaching into the area beside her water bottle.

A second video, recorded on March 4, appears to show Xu emptying material from a small white container into the bottle. Roughly 30 seconds later, he returns and turns the bottle.

“My blood was frozen,” Yuan, now 50, told the Standard after viewing the recordings for the first time.

“I almost died. I experienced death so, so close so many times. I cannot let him go.”

The footage has surfaced as Xu, 41, prepares to ask an Alameda County judge on Monday to set aside his felony conviction after completing a sentence widely criticized as unusually lenient.

Although the original charges carried the possibility of a life sentence, Xu ultimately served no additional jail time beyond credit for one day and was placed on probation for two years.

Yuan says she still deals with severe health problems and is outraged that Xu may now have his conviction dismissed.

‘This legal system already failed me,’ she said. ‘This is my last resort.’

The nightmare began shortly after Yuan joined Berkeley Engineering and Research, a forensic engineering company, in January 2017.

Both scientists had earned doctorates through the University of California, Berkeley, and specialized in studying metals.

Yuan recalled an uncomfortable first encounter when Xu told her she could not use the company’s materials characterization laboratory.

‘I know how to use all these tools,’ she remembered telling him. ‘I’ve even repaired them.’

Determined to avoid confrontation, she decided to keep her distance.

‘I’ll just simply do my work, and he can do whatever he wants,’ she recalled thinking.

EXPLORE MORE: We flew to Russia for a New Year’s party – and got conscripted into Putin’s army…now we’re on Ukraine frontline – NewsFinale

Within weeks, however, she began experiencing alarming symptoms, including hair loss and dry heaving.

By July 2017, her condition had deteriorated dramatically.

After drinking from her water bottle one morning, she became desperately ill and a neighbor rushed her to the emergency room.

‘I began to feel like I was dying,’ she recalled.

Further terrifying episodes followed, prompting repeated hospital visits, consultations with specialists and even a trip to China seeking medical treatment.

Yuan feared she had stomach cancer, but the medical examinations failed to explain her symptoms.

Her worried parents eventually traveled from China to help care for her.

The breakthrough came in January 2019 when her mother noticed a peculiar sour taste after drinking from Yuan’s water bottle.

Suspecting someone was tampering with her drinks, Yuan installed the hidden camera that would ultimately expose Xu.

Police subsequently discovered massive concentrations of cadmium in her water.

Laboratory testing revealed levels reaching 3.5 million times the federal drinking-water limit, according to a report reviewed by The Standard.

Blood samples from Yuan and both her parents also tested positive for cadmium. Her mother had unknowingly used contaminated water from the bottle to prepare family meals.

Berkeley Police Sergeant Jennifer Wilson, who investigated the case, described her astonishment upon reviewing the surveillance footage.

‘It was shocking,’ Wilson said. ‘No one would have believed her in the world that this was happening if she didn’t have proof of it. … It really launched this case immediately.’

Xu was charged in March 2019 with premeditated attempted murder and two felony poisoning offenses.

He was subsequently released on $2 million bail with GPS monitoring, while restrictions on his movements were progressively relaxed.

In September 2023, prosecutors under then-Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price offered Xu a plea agreement that dropped the attempted murder charge.

He pleaded no contest to one felony count of poisoning, a plea that carries the legal effect of a conviction without admitting the underlying allegations.

The proposed punishment was one year of probation.

At his March 2024 sentencing, Judge Kimberly Colwell described the arrangement as ‘extremely generous, considering everything in this case’ and increased probation to two years.

She also ordered Xu to stay away from Yuan and her parents.

‘Please do not touch any poison at all. Ever. Ever,’ the judge warned.

Yuan had sought almost $500,000 in restitution but was awarded just $7,058 after the court considered a defense toxicologist’s report disputing that cadmium poisoning would produce long-term health effects. She strongly contests those conclusions.

Xu completed probation in March 2026 and is now seeking relief under California’s record-dismissal law.

Although a successful petition would not erase his conviction from law-enforcement records, Yuan fears it could prevent future employers from discovering what happened.

Yuan says her health remains damaged and she cannot work full time.

An Australian man accused of killing a Thai teenager and concealing her remains in a suitcase has indicated he intends to plead guilty to hiding the body.

Simon Peter Carman, 45, made the admission during a procedural hearing at Pattaya Provincial Court on Monday over the death of 17-year-old Tunchanok ‘Cake’ Donhomla.

Despite accepting responsibility for concealing the teenager’s body, Carman continues to deny murdering her. He claims he acted in self-defence and says he was unaware of Tunchanok’s true age.

Carman, a Perth truck driver, told the court he would plead guilty to placing Tunchanok’s naked body inside a black suitcase and abandoning it beside railway tracks on the outskirts of Pattaya on June 27.

Security footage reportedly showed the teenager holding hands with Carman as the pair entered the lobby of his condominium two days before her body was discovered.

A recent autopsy found that Tunchanok had suffered a brain injury, along with injuries described as being consistent with suffocation.

Carman was arrested at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport on the day the body was found, shortly before he was due to board a Jetstar flight to Perth.

He had previously denied charges including intentional murder, concealing a corpse, moving or destroying a body, and abducting a minor for indecent purposes.

The judge told Carman that the evidence against him on the corpse-concealment charge appeared strong, while a confession could lead to a more lenient outcome. Carman then indicated that he would change his plea to guilty.

Appearing in court barefoot and restrained at the wrists and ankles, Carman maintained that he had been forced to protect himself after Tunchanok allegedly held a knife against his throat.

He claimed the teenager died unexpectedly after he grabbed and squeezed her jaw, insisting that he did not apply pressure to her neck.

During the hearing, Carman also asked to be released on bail, according to The West Australian.

The court informed him that his bail application had already been refused.

“I haven’t done anything to deserve this,” Carman responded.

“I am innocent and they cannot lock up an innocent man.”

The presiding judge urged Carman to enter a guilty plea to the murder charge, which would allow him to put forward his claim of self-defence.

KEEP READING: Australian Tourist Town Mourns Sudden Death of Popular Restaurant Owner

‘Why should I plead guilty? I would be lying to myself and everyone,’ Carman replied.

The Australian was also asked in court about whether he would pay $70,000 in compensation to Tunchanok’s family, as is common in Thai criminal cases.

Carman said that he would not pay the family as he had done nothing wrong but would consider helping them if he was released on bail.

Tunchanok’s grieving family confronted Carman in the courtroom before he could be led away, the ABC reported.

‘Why did you kill her?’ her cousin Khanitta Nongkhampoon asked.

Carman replied: ‘I didn’t kill Cake.’

‘She’s responsible for her own death. She had a knife to my throat.

‘I don’t feel guilty because I haven’t done anything wrong.’

Tunchanok’s family on Friday filed a separate civil lawsuit against him and are seeking more than $51,000 in compensation.

The family were appointed a government lawyer to help them as the civil and criminal cases run concurrently, with Carman only required to pay if found guilty.

Carman’s trial is expected to run for several months.

If found guilty of murder, he faces life imprisonment or the death penalty in Thailand

– READ MORE: The heartbreaking promise Tunchanok Donhomla made to her family

– READ MORE: Inside the ‘hellhole’ Thai jail cell where accused Aussie killer Simon Carman is being held