When it’s Ken Livingstone it would seem.
The story so far: Ken Livingstone says he’s called in the police to investigate allegations against Lee Jasper and, as a result, has suspended him. He also says the allegations against Jasper are nonsense, which did cause a few people to ask the question of why he was reporting someone to the police when he didn’t think they’d done anything wrong…. (wasting police time, anyone?). But anyway, he says that someone under police investigation has to be suspended for their job, so suspended Jasper was.
And now: the police say actually, despite Ken’s comments, they aren’t investigating. As Brian Paddick put it:
Last week, Ken Livingstone suspended one of his closest aides, Lee Jasper, saying he wanted to enable the police to investigate the allegations of malpractice and corruption made against him.
“We now learn from Scotland Yard that there is no such police investigation taking place. It begs the question why was Lee Jasper suspended in the first place?”
Meanwhile, Lee Jasper is in trouble over yet another incident – this time his interview with The Voice newspaper backing Ken Livingstone in the London Mayor election, saying he is “the candidate of choice”.
The problem with this? Lee Jasper is employed by the GLA in a politically restricted job. The GLA’s rules on what politically restricted staff can’t do include this bit:
e) Speak to the public, at large or to a section of the public, with the apparent intention of affecting support for a political party.
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7 Comments
Actually, this is what the police are saying:
A Metropolitan police spokesman said the force was investigating six allegations of fraud in connection with six organisations that received public funding.
“In addition we have received a request asking us to consider the conduct of one individual and his involvement with these organisations,” he said.
“To date there have been no criminal allegations reported to us in connection with this individual, but, as with anyone, should concerns arise out of the fraud investigation, or subsequent criminal allegations be reported to us these will be considered and appropriate action taken.
“However matters of alleged misconduct that are not supported by evidence of criminal wrongdoing are not a matter for the police.”
What I don’t understand is why Lee Jasper hasn’t been fired for frequently breaking the rules on GLA members campaigning for Ken. This isn’t the first time it has happened.
http://lettersfromatory.wordpress.com
The view from the streets:
Are you lot really as thick as Guido?
Begs the question if Jasper is not being accused of any criminality why have Johnson and Paddick been on the mayor’s case to get rid? And why anyone thinks it is big and clever to split hairs between being personally invetigated and having one’s alleged performance vis-a-vis sic funded organisations being investigated.
Chris Paul,
So why did Livingstone suspend Lee Jasper? Nobody EXCEPT the Mayor (by referring this matter to the police) has ever accused him of criminality, its the way that Mr Jasper used his highly influential position to exert improper pressure on the London Development Agency and it’s grant giving procedures that is being called in to question.
Stupid Tories have muddied the water by talking about “tides of corruption” within the LDA. Given 6 LDA projects are being looked at by the police, they might have been better to use the phrase “small wave”, but even the Tories haven’t accused Lee Jasper of being corrupt.
Livingstone’s defenders will instantly dismiss what I am about to recommend, but for those of you with a more open mind do take a look at Andrew Gilligan’s piece in today’s London Standard – http://tinyurl.com/2gwvcu
As Mike Tuffrey put it yesterday; “if the Mayor believes Lee Jasper has done no wrong, he is wasting police time – http://tinyurl.com/yvpg99
When they pretend they are investigating Labour postal vote fiddling in Lancashire.
It is quite clear that the charge of ‘a tide of corruption’ made by Richard Barnes on 13 December is a criminal allegation. He should either present evidence to the police for it immediately or formally withdraw it and apologise.