Bill Gates has confirmed that the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein sought a personal relationship with him, but insisted he never reciprocated. In an interview with British broadcaster Channel 4, the Microsoft co-founder said Epstein “wanted a relationship” but Gates “didn’t reciprocate”. The admission comes as British media intensifies scrutiny of prominent figures with links to Epstein, whose suicide in 2019 ended a federal sex trafficking investigation.
Gates, 69, had previously acknowledged meeting Epstein in 2011, three years after Epstein’s initial conviction for soliciting a minor. In his latest remarks, Gates said: “I met him, I had dinner with him, and I’ve regretted it ever since.” He added: “I thought it would help me in terms of global health philanthropy. But I was wrong.”
However, Gates was pressed on whether Epstein sought a personal relationship. “He wanted a relationship, but I didn’t reciprocate,” Gates stated. He offered no further details about the nature of the relationship Epstein allegedly sought. The BBC’s Newsnight programme, which last year secured the Epstein associates database, has ramped up its coverage of Gates’s ties. Labour MP Harriet Harman, chair of the Joint Committee on Human Rights, has called for a “full public inquiry” into Epstein’s network in the UK, saying “British institutions need to be transparent about their connections to this predator.”
The Guardian reported that Gates’s meetings with Epstein included a 2013 visit to Epstein’s private Caribbean island, Little St James. Gates has previously characterised their interactions as “business meetings” focusing on philanthropy, but his admission that Epstein sought a relationship raises questions about the billionaire’s judgement. The Times has editorialised that “Gates must explain why he repeatedly met a man who was a registered sex offender.”
Meanwhile, Buckingham Palace continues to face scrutiny over Prince Andrew’s friendship with Epstein, which led to a settlement with Virginia Giuffre, Epstein’s accuser. Gates’s admission shifts the focus back to the top of the tech elite. The Daily Mail’s front page today asks: “What else does Bill know?”
Gates’s foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, has issued a statement saying it “remains focused on its mission to improve global health and reduce poverty”. But critics argue that Gates’s association with Epstein undermines his philanthropic credibility. “He’s not a victim here. He was a willing participant in a relationship with a monster,” said Ruth Deech, a crossbench peer and former chair of the Bar Standards Board.
On the ground in the North, the reaction is muted. In a Manchester pub, factory worker Darren Meadows told me: “I don’t care who Bill Gates had dinner with. My concern is that my kids can’t afford school uniforms.” That sentiment reflects the reality that, for many, the Epstein saga is a distraction from rising costs and stagnant wages. But the story matters because it reveals how power and wealth operate in the shadows. The British public deserve to know who knew what, and when.
As the inquiry into Epstein’s British connections intensifies, Gates’s admission will not be the last. The focus now must be on accountability, not just for the billionaire class but for the institutions that enabled Epstein. The truth, however uncomfortable, must be laid bare.
