Beckett's Hypocrisy :
Who Were Secret Donors to Her Trust?
Margaret Beckett wrote on Friday to David Cameron urging him to explain the source of loans to the Tories under Michael Howard. She demanded he reveal the names of wealthy individuals and companies, the amounts they loaned - and whether any are foreign. Unless he followed Labour and the Liberal Democrats in giving full details of lenders, his party's credibility would be "seriously compromised", she wrote. In the letter Beckett claimed she was "concerned" at the refusal to publish a list of lenders or to confirm whether any of the party's cash came from foreign sources."I am sure you will recognise that failure to do so would seriously compromise your party's credibility and remove all legitimacy from any call you made to argue the case for openness and reform to the system... We understand that some of these loans may have been given on the basis of confidentiality. But it is clear that the public interest in outlining the full extent of loans received, as we have done, is sufficiently strong to justify any such undertakings you have given being overridden."
Guido can reveal that Ms Beckett operated a secret trust in the late 90s to finance her leadership ambitions (people forget she was, after John Smith's death, once leader of the Labour party). The secret "Margaret Beckett Research and Administration Trust" was the conduit for anonymous donations to support her leadership ambitions, it operated in the late 90s but was closed down by 1998 after Blair won the election. In 2000 such trusts became illegal.
Guido has today written to Ms Beckett;
click to enlarge
UPDATE : Guido has now received an official statement from Margaret Beckett in reply to this letter.
16 comments:
Nice one.
I expect we can expect a major newspaper to follow your lead later in the week?
Is that the sound of a glass house smashing I hear?
Guido sir, you are a genius.
You ought to see the humungous caravan she bought with all that dosh.
Quality Guido, quality.
You are worth your weight in gold, Guido, that is if there is any gold left in our reserves. Or should I say worth your weight in euros? Doesn't have the same ring but you know what I mean!!
Did anyone see the Beckett / Mellor debate on Newsnight back in the 90s when Mellor was Secretary to the Treasury and Beckett his shadow?
Apparently it went something like this:
Mellor: "Well of course Margaret's position is (blah blah blah".
Paxman: "Maybe we should get that from the horse's mouth"
Mellor corpses, cue cut to Beckett doing her best 'mouth full of lemon juice' face.
I do hope that Ms Beckett does not get in touch with you, or at least if she does, she does not use a taxpayer-funded phone line.
I draw your attention to the cost of calling Guido's premium rate personal number:
Charge codes:
http://www.serviceview.bt.com/list/current/docs/Call_Charges.boo/16311.htm
Costs per minute to call those numbers:
http://www.serviceview.bt.com/list/current/docs/Call_Charges.boo/00165.htm
k - Calls to Personal Numbering Services
07.08.1997 37.50 25.00 12.50
That's 37.5p/minute daytime, 25p/minute evening, and 12.5p/minute weekend..... You could call one of Simon Hughes' mantalk lines for less than that.
It is not normal to rip-off the people providing you with information.
Guido is worth it.
Guido - excellent !
Clearly no funds were spent cosmetically.
There is some background to the key players in the Labour Party finances over the last decade in the blog by Dave Osler http://davespartblog.blogspot.com/.
He's also done a very good book on the role of business in the labour party , Labour Party plc.
How much did Enron provide for Labour Party coffers through sponsored tables, lunches, cash ?
http://www.gregpalast.com/detail.cfm?artid=156&row=1
How dare you! How dare you suggest that Enron could buy this New Labour government by donating £36,000 to the party. Your Prime Minister's government is not for sale. It can however, be rented for £5,000 a month -- or so went the offer to a consultant for Enron.
I know. I was the consultant.
Access was so damn cheap because it wasn't the cash that moved Tony Blair. It was love. Cash lubricated it, then sealed it, like flowers sent the morning after. Over the following months, I watched as Blair busted his campaign promises to coal miners, to consumers, to the poor, to the we're-not-Tory-sleaze good government types in his party to present Enron and other US power companies with a bouquet of broken campaign promises.
Mittal's £125,000 payout to New Labour was just one more bouquet on the mantlepiece, a sign of affection between the weightless business of the future and its weightless government enabler.
The claims surround the fact that, in 1998, the government announced a moratorium on new gas fired power stations in an attempt to "level the playing field" with coal.
The ban was always intended to be temporary and short term and was lifted in November 2000, Downing Street insists.
A spokesman also said that representatives from Enron - along with those from other energy companies including Mobil, Sweb and Esso - met with ministers between 1998 and 2000.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/1786892.stm
Now having burned up North Sea gas to generate electricity we have depleted the reserves faster and are facing higher prices than elsewhere in Europe...............factories are idle as energy costs make them uncompetitive..................yet back in 1998...............
The price of Enron's Shilling.....
Guido yer feckin genius...
Had hopes that this woman would be better. Such a disappointment.....
Post a Comment