Remember the ongoing controversy over the Conservatives bussing activists into marginal seats and whether the costs should feature on local expenses returns? Around 20 police forces are still carrying out investigations into a serious issue.
At the same time, there were a few complaints about former Liberal Democrat MPs’ expenses. There were suggestions that visits to constituencies by the Leader’s Tour should somehow be put on local expenses. Given that these visits were about promoting the Liberal Democrats to the country and providing the piece for nightly news bulletins, the costs were, of course, included on the national return.
Duncan Hames was one of those Liberal Democrats investigated and this week he has been cleared of any wrong-doing. From the Gazette and Herald:
A police spokesperson said: “The circumstances were that the then party leader Nick Clegg visited Chippenham in his own bus, and there was a concern that this should have been included in Mr Hames expenditure return.
“This is not the case, and there was no requirement for him to include this visit.
“Party Leaders visit constituencies during elections and the cost comes out of central party funds.
“The Channel 4 News programme highlighted circumstances relating to the Conservative and Unionist Party’s use of a ‘Battlebus’ to bring party activists to marginal seats to support the local candidate, a completely separate issue and not a tactic used by the Liberal Democrat Party.
“Wiltshire Police have investigated this allegation and are satisfied that the details as reported were in fact not present in Duncan Hames’s campaign.
“Wiltshire Police have closed their investigation and conclude that Duncan Hames and his agent were not in breach of any offences contained in the Representation of the Peoples Act 1983.”
Mr Hames, who represented the Liberal Democrats, said: “It came as quite a surprise to me back in May to learn that concerns about my campaign had been reported to the police.
“Evidently, since the independent police investigation into my campaign found the details as reported to them were in fact not the case.
“I welcome their conclusion therefore that neither my agent nor I committed any offences.
The surprise is that it took so long for such a spurious allegation to be debunked.
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4 Comments
Presumably if there are any further investigations they will come to the same conclusion. Perhaps Channel 4 should be charged the costs of all this?
Are there any outstanding investigations into Liberal Democrats?
The fact that our activists pay their own way and stay with local members means we are fairly innoculated from a similar problem to the Conservatives’ “battle bus”/hotel issue. We are stingey – in other words. Our activists don’t need such inducements. Long may it continue!
I wish the police would investigate the honours system and the lobby system …