Paul Staines | |
---|---|
Born |
Paul De Laire Staines 11 February 1967 Ealing, London, United Kingdom |
Nationality | Irish |
Alma mater | University of Lincoln |
Occupation | Political blogger |
Political party |
formerly associated with: Conservative Party Social Democratic Party Progressive Democrats |
Website | www.order-order.com |
Paul De Laire Staines (born 11 February 1967) is a libertarian political blogger, who publishes the Guido Fawkes website. His website was described by The Daily Telegraph as "one of Britain's leading political blogsites" in 2007. Since 2013 the Sun on Sunday newspaper has published a weekly Guido Fawkes column. Born and raised in England, Staines is an Irish citizen.
Staines acquired an interest in politics as a libertarian in the 1980s and did public relations for acid house parties in the early 1990s. He then spent several years in finance, first as a broker then as a trader. In 2001 he sued his fund's financial backer in a commercial dispute. Consequently, Staines declared himself bankrupt in October 2003 after two years of litigation, and legal costs on both sides running into hundreds of thousands of pounds.
In September 2004, Staines began the "Guido Fawkes Blog of plots, rumours and conspiracy". The name is an alternative of Guy Fawkes, and continues that symbolism with the masthead slogan "tittle tattle, gossip and rumours about Westminster's Mother of Parliaments. Written from the perspective of the only man to enter parliament with honest intentions. The intention being to blow it up with gunpowder..."
In 2006, Staines along with Jag Singh co-founded MessageSpace, a digital advertising agency which operates an advertising network representing dozens of leading political websites. MessageSpace also advises political clients on digital campaigning using social media. In 2012 it advised the successful Boris Johnson London mayoral campaign. Private Eye reported in June 2012 that MessageSpace was advising the Russian Embassy in London on using social media. In 2013 Staines together with Singh and Matthew Elliott co-founded WESS Digital, a data analysis company supporting political and charity campaign work.
St Kitts and Nevis-based Global & General Nominees Limited (GGN) publishes the Guido Fawkes Blog. Staines describes himself as an "adviser" to GGN. He is a director of Global & General Nominees (Hong Kong) Limited.