Owner: Cox says URL:http://coxsays.blogspot.com/ Join Date: Sat, 08 Dec 2007 12:40:36 -0600 Rating:0 Site Description: Reporting the latest Westminster news - with humour! Site statistics:Click here
Parties given funds to understand donor rules 2007-12-08 15:16:00 In what can only be described as another shining example of a waste of public funds, the BBC reports that the Electoral Commission divvied up £700k between the parties to help them understand the new laws on donations over £5,000.The Electoral Commission - the UK's naffest quango - gave £180,000 in 2001/2002 to the Labour party with the dodgy donations from David Abrahams starting the following year. A spokesperson for the Electoral Commission said the money was to be used to hire new staff or implement new systems. Like honesty?As Matthew Parris reported early this scandal isn't even that impressive - the Labour party can't even do corruption properly. This new piece of information makes the story even more farcical and adds insult to injury. Aside from the obvious lack of a "moral compass" the party was even given funding to help understand the laws. What was the money spent on, then? Did the Electoral Commission monitor how the money was spent? Does ANYONE in government monito
Brown hides again 2007-12-08 12:56:00 There's a good chance Brown
won't be attending the signing of the EU treaty in Lisbon (HERE). It seems as though Brown is never at the scene of the crime - another prime example being the Northern Rock crisis. His tendency to hide has already earned him the name "Macavity", after the feline master criminal in T. S. Elliot's famous poem who is never there at the scene of the crime.Brown's portrayal of himself as a decisive and strong leader was shattered over the non-election. If he is absent during the signing of Britain's most important treaty (for all the wrong reasons) then his "not me, guv" attitude will be entrenched further. Read more:hides
May Day mayday for Brown.... 2007-12-08 03:10:00 The Daily Mail reports today that Blairite supporters have given Brown
until May to sort things out. The elections in May will, they say, provide an indicator as to how Brown fairs in the polls. Supporters of Brown note how Labour bounced back after the petrol crises. Somewhat different this time round, perhaps?This except excitedly reports on the Blair-nosers plotting their regicide:"And they have begun behind-the-scenes efforts to revive the leadership hopes of David Miliband as their favourite to lead Labour in Opposition. The prospect of what some are describing as the "Blairite resistance" will infuriate Mr Brown's supporters, who will see it as a deliberate attempt to destabilise him. They will be particularly alarmed by the suggestion that some in the party are conceding defeat and are preparing for life in Opposition. "The Mail talking about Labour in opposition isn't something new - but if it is true that senior Labour figures are seeing the writing on the wall it only adds
A country called Europe 2007-12-07 12:40:00 Those eurocrats will be ever so pleased that someone is buying their myth of a country called Europe
. Hat tip: Daniel Hannan
Now it's a 42 day limit for they-might-be-guilty terrorists 2007-12-07 01:10:00 Jacqui Smith has been rummaging around in that old felt hat she keeps under her desk in Whitehall and pulled out another figure for extended detention. This time, she wants suspects to be held for a maximum of 42 days without charge.Extending detention without charge to 56 days looked like an untenable position to start with but with the new figure it doesn't even look ridiculous, just lame. She was accused back then of plucking figures from thin air as no one seemed to be able to account for the 56 day period. So why 42 now but not then? Why should they expect agreement now when they didn't have it before? The opposition will be on the front foot and can claim a civil liberty victory having forced Labour to back down. This whole charade makes the government look weak and indecisive - as if they're clutching at straws. They should cut their losses and start over again. Realise their mistake and move on. It's becoming a common theme that every policy from this Government is being wa
What happens next...? 2007-12-07 01:04:00 "Hain with some children" Suggestions below: usual rules apply. Look here what you could win!!
Frank Dobson on the offensive 2007-12-07 01:00:00 Frank Dobson
, the ex-minister, is apparently on the offensive in Whitehall and rallying the troops against Jacqui Smiths proposed *insert random number here* extension of detention without trial.In his capacity as chair of the Parliamentary Labour Party Civil Liberties Group he has passed around a note advertising a meeting "to see what we can do to persuade ministers to accept an alternative to a further extension which we can all support".Those people who are in favour of the proposed extensions are as rare as hen's teeth anyway and a multitude of organisations are against it or have refused to give their backing.- The Commons Select Committee on Home Affairs has heard nothing to convince it of the case so Brown shouldn't look forward to a ringing endorsement when they give their verdict in mid December.- The head of MI5 has failed to rally behind the proposal. Someone, you would think, who would know what they were talking about on these matters. etc etc.Brown made a promise to us Read more:Frank
Labour lawyers helped set-up donorgate. 2007-12-06 01:15:00 A shocking article in the Grauniad today (HERE) states how Labour
party officials and lawyers knew about Abrahams' funding arrangements and, in fact, set them up for him.The covenants drawn up four years ago were thought to exploit a loophole in the Political Parties Act and were created to ensure that Abraham's associates, Janet Kidd and Ray Ruddick and McCarthy, spent the money as he intended. It would also ensure he didn't pay tax on the money given to them. A Labour informer has said that two officials were then responsible for "shepherding the cash". Cox has reported before how identity theft may be involved in donor gate.So, donorgate has taken a new turn for the worst. We still don't know whether it was Abrahams' idea or Labour's to give money through third parties but if they were actively setting this up who knows what they're capable of. It will be interesting to see how Sir Michael White, the BBC's resident apologist for New Labour, tries to shove this under the carp
Cameron's tactics 2007-12-06 01:00:00 Cameron must have been reading Janet Daley in the Telegraph because his attack in the Commons yesterday during PMQs, was, for the most part, restrained. He could have ripped Labout to shreds over their dodgy donations but he instead focused, with just as much vigour, on the part time defence sectreary and some other lesser known points relating to trust in government.As Cox has reported before (HERE) it's vital that Cameron isn't seen as a braying public school boy that never misses an opportunity to give Mr Bean a good roasting. Being more restrained and exposing the incometene of the government through cold hard facts is a much better strategy and will work well if he can continue to prove that he is more grown up critics suggest.Brown looked very unfconfortable yesterday during the exchange, perhaps he was expecting something worse. In fact, 12 minutes into the Brown-Cameron exchange you can see how he starts to nervously twiddle with his pencil (video HERE). His body language bet Read more:Cameron
, tactics
Government prepares plans to nationalise Northern Rock 2007-12-06 00:55:00 The Government
is drawing up plans
for the nationalisation of Northern
Rock, which could happen as soon as February, the Telegraph reports. If a private bidder is not accepted before the deadline this week then the ownership of NR by the state could be pushed through parliament within a day. Such a move would be highly embarrassing for the government not least because in a capitalist society, nationalised financial institutions should not exist.Of course, it should never have been given the money to bail out shareholders and savers in the first place. "Wait!" You say, "Those small time savers up in t'north were not gambling like shareholders". You are, of course, right, which is why there are two parts to Cox's argument.One is that shareholders should realise that the cornerstone of capitalism is risk and reward - your money is never safe no matter where it is or how long it's been there, they cannot be expected to be bailed out. Ignorance is not an excuse.So what of the savers? Wel
"Save our National anthem" 2007-12-05 01:16:00 The Sun newspaper has started a national campaign to prevent the alteration of the national anthem. In what is another damaging anti-Brown headline, it says,"THE SUN is today launching a campaign to save our National
Anthem from Gordon Brown’s interfering citizenship csar, who wants to make God Save The Queen more “inclusive”.Snooty legal eagle Lord Goldsmith, a champagne socialist earning £1million a year, is also against motto “For Queen and Country.”Good to see someone actually pointing out the obvious, even if it is with the blatantly unsubtle ad-hominem arguments.
"Proxygate" 2007-12-05 01:05:00 "Proxygate" is the term being used in Westminster for the crisis befalling Labour where dodgy donations were received through a third party, something illegal in electoral law (HERE, HERE and HERE).In a meeting with the Parliamentary Labour Party, Labour members urged Gordon Brown to turn the guns on the Tories over sleaze. Presumably, this is all part of Ed Balls' master plan to "finish off the Tories once and for all".During the meeting when Brown was encouraged to focus on the Tories' track record on funding, one member of the Labour party is rumoured to have shouted, "They're just as bad as us." Not exactly the right message to send out.Hat tip: The First Post Mole
Paul Gray lands cushy job in Cabinet Office 2007-12-05 01:00:00 After a mere The ex-HMRC head who oversaw the loss of benefit details for 25 million people has been put to work in the cabinet office because the are UNABLE to sack him until the New Year. Apparently he is doing some work for the cabinet secretary, Gus O'Donnell, on a salary of £200,000.The cabinet office had this to say on the matter:"In the meantime, he has agreed to a request from Cabinet
Secretary Sir Gus O’Donnell to undertake a short piece of work on cross-government matters until Christmas."When he resigned with immediate effect, Paul Gray's period of notice meant that he would be paid until the end of the year."As a result, he could receive payment for no work, or receive payment for doing some work. Or he could be sacked??"It was thought to be better in the public interest that he did some work. There is no additional cost to the public purse. He will leave the payroll on 31 December." Paul Gray has done enough damage to the public interest - and the public purse - alrea Read more:lands
Peter Hain admits dodgy donations 2007-12-04 01:00:00 The donorgate scandal took another turn for the worst last night as the cabinet minister Peter
Hain revealed more donations to his unsuccessful leadership campaign has not been registered properley.The head of the department for work and pecsions said that the failures to report the donations to the electoral commission were "extemely regrettable" and that they were due to "administrative errors". Seem to a lot of those in Labour party at the minute.They are insisting that the dodgy donations are not connected with the wanabee anonymous donor David Abrahams. In a statement he said:"In light of recent events I have undertaken a review of all donations to my deputy leadership campaign. "This afternoon I have been to see the Electoral Commission to inform them that further donations to my campaign were not registered as they should have been."Brown's desperate attempts to "relaunch" his credibilty are swallowed everyday by more revelations of corruption within the Labour party. This is
Labours plethora of laws (which they can't even follow) has lead to a lack of accountability 2007-12-04 00:55:00 During Tony Blair's time in office, 3000 new offences were added to the statue books which is almost one crime for every day he was in office. One of the things that characterises the Labour government is how frantically and frequently laws are made to control every minutiae of our lives (hate crime/thought crime, ID cards etc).So it comes with some irony, as we have learned over the last week, that senior Labour party members are unable to follow the letter of the law which they themselves created. Of all the laws they have imposed on us, they are so staggeringly incompetent as to break their own electoral laws and permit donations through a third party.More worryingly, though, the nannying of the population through the creation of thousands of laws has led to an lack of accountability. It should fall on each individual to be responsible for their own actions and take control of decisions. Too often we look to the state for guidance where once common sense would have pointed out a qu
Identitity theft in Labour donor sleaze? 2007-12-03 16:05:00 There has been some speculation over the inclusion of identity theft
in the long list of convictions that MPs involved in the sleaze scandal could be charged with. Now it looks as thought that might be the case. A lawyer based in the North-East gone to the police because of concerns that his identity was stolen in order to illegally fund Labour
donations.George Crawford is concerned because as man with the same name as himself was registered as giving a donation of £36,000 in 2004. his complaint has been forward to Scotland Yard because he believes his identity was being used to make unlawful donations to the Labour party.Mr Crawford works for the same company as John McCarthy, the same man who was previously identified as one of the third party donors used by Mr Abrahams to donate money. Both men have worked for Mr Abrahams previously.In a statement, Mr Crawford said:"I am not a member of any political party and I have better things to do with my money than give it to political parti
2-jobs-Des has cheek to slam 5 Army chiefs 2007-12-03 12:21:00 Des Browne, the part time Defence Secretary, today fought back over claims that our forces are underfunded and ill equiped to do their job properly. In a response to devastating comments made by the five ex-Army chiefs in the House of Lords he said in the Commons today:"It is unfortunate, at best, that people constantly refer to our troops as not being able to do their job when that is not the case. “It is potentially very dangerous also because there is an enemy who listens to every single thing that is said in this House or reported in our media. Any enemy listening would have already realised the government couldn't run a piss up in a brewery.“Our troops' force protection in my view is undermined by people who misdescribe the level of protection they actually have.”In addition he also said that the head of the Army, Gen Sir Richard Dannatt, welcomed the "significant" extra investment going into the Army. Is the same General who said only last month that troops are feeling "d
National Anthem not "inclusive enough"? 2007-12-03 01:16:00 Lord Goldsmith has reportedly said that the national anthem should be more inclusive
as later verses of the piece go on to talk about rebellious Scots. Seems just as relevant for today, then.He is not suggesting that the national anthem be changed totally, only that words could be added or changed in later verses to reflect today's situation.He made the observations because he is conducting a citizenship review for Brown. It comes after the Union flag was recently criticised for not representing Welsh interests by neglecting to feature their flag on the flag of the Union.Since Brown has come to power we have had talk of the Union actually breaking up, questions raised over the validity of the flag, and now, the national anthem. There are problems with the Union due to Labours botched devolution programme but the flag and anthem are not broken so they don't fix to be fixed. Labour should stop tinkering.UPDATE:Lord Goldsmith skirts very, VERY carefully around the issue, it's almost co Read more:National
CRIMINAL investigation into Wendy Alexander begins.... 2007-12-02 10:13:00 Strathclyde police have confirmed that they are looking into claims that WendyAlexander
received illegal donations from an overseas donor (article HERE). The complaint was put forward by SNP researcher Mark Hirst. What Wendy did wrong HEREThis means Labour will be facing CRIMINAL investigation
s in both England and Scotland over the improper registration/acceptance of donors' money. Alex Salmond probably doesn't believe his luck. Her husband, Brian Ashcroft, is also involved as a Scottish newspaper previously alleged that he had written a document questioning a month ago the validity of the donation from Mr Green Jersey who is domiciled in Jersey.Brown is urging Wendy not to quit in fear of a domino effect and the rolling of heads in the Westminster inner circle that would result from the her departure. Wendy Alexander is spinning the line that she still has a contribution to make to the lives of fellow Scots. It really is only a matter of time before someone resigns. Wendy looks to
Ex-DWP employee held onto private data for a year 2007-12-02 04:45:00 As part of the daily onslaught engulfing the Labour government it has been revealed that an ex-employee of the department for work and pensions kept two discs containing the personal information of thousands of people in her possession for a year. The DWP revealed the blunder last night admitting that she forgot to return the discs when she finished working for them. Good week to bury bad news. The discs were unencrypted and didn't contain bank details. As a contractor hired out by the DWP she was using the discs as part of a project to get people away from giro and onto a credit transfer system.It's thought there are about 9,000 records on each disc so while it's not on the same scale as the HMRC fiasco it shows yet another blatant disregard for the privacy and security of our information. This image will stick with Labour for a long time.
Mahmoud Khayami is SECOND donor scandal for Labour.... 2007-12-01 16:33:00 Turns out that the second biggest donor to the Labour
party is an Iranian born French citizen (pictured) with a car dealership in California who isn't even allowed to vote in UK general elections. Any minute now Brown will be denying knowledge and launching a review. Johnathon Oliver, the reporter who broke the first the McSleaze scandal involving Abrahams has pulled it off a second time. The article says:"The focus of the sleaze scandal engulfing the Government switched dramatically last night to the Labour Party's second biggest donor - an Iranian-born car dealer who is not even entitled to vote in general elections. Dodgy dealings from someone in the car dealer industry? Who'd have thought...Mahmoud
Khayami, a French citizen, has given a total of £830,000 in the past eight months, making him Labour's biggest individual backer after Lord Sainsbury. " [picture: Mail on Sunday]COMPETITION - What will be the name of the new scandal? Since he's French my choice would be: "frog-gate
Investors at risk in data scandal 2007-12-01 13:25:00 Sky News (1903) is reporting that millions of investors are at risk from fraud because their details sent to HMRC by fat cats in the City are often posted unregistered and unencrypted. HMRC needs to know the NI numbers, names, star signs, and birthstones etc of those people for tax reasons.Fund managers have to send the data on unencrypted discs because HMRC say that trying to decode information from a myriad of different institutions is too difficult adding that such a set up would be "a recipe for chaos". Words need not be spoken.HMRC thinks the onus is on the City to make sure the data gets there safe and sound. Surely popping a few million identities in the post is the method of a bygone era? Cox wonders if billions can be spent on an NHS supercomputer then why not have some government channel/system along which sensitive information can be sent? Read more:Investors
Harman's lights go out 2007-12-01 12:29:00 Judging by this video it looks as though the money poured into Harman
's nosebag by 2-names-Abrahams wasn't spent paying the electricity bills...
What happens next...? 2007-11-30 01:20:00 The possibilities are endless! Have a look at what the best poster wins.
Let the mud slinging commence!! 2007-11-30 01:10:00 Harman, probably pissed off by the lack of public support from her boss, has said that she was referred to the donor proxying for Mr Abrahams by the leader of Mr Brown's election campaign, Chris Leslie.This has two implications:1) it is gradually starting to look increasingly less likely that everyone apart from Brown knew about the donations. Hilary Ben refused on the advice of his campaign manager and the general secretary, Peter Watts resigned over the debacle. Gordon - Ignorance may be bliss but it is not believable.2) it makes it harder for Brown to get rid of Harman. The question of "Harmany" days it might be before she resigns just got more complicated. If she is sacked, why not sack Chris Leslie? But then, why should Brown remain? Why not sack them all?
SEE IT: Stalin to Mr Bean 2007-12-20 01:09:00 Nick Clegg may have been recently been elected as Lib Dem leader but Vince's moment in the lime light will not be forgotten quickly. Above is a morph of Stalin to Brown to Mr Bean. Tory election material?Hat tip: PlayPolitical
Brown attempts to sweep problems under the carpet 2007-12-20 01:03:00 The Beeb is reporting that Gordon Brown
is confident recent national disasters such as the datagate and donorgate scandals will be forgotten by the New Year. Cox isn't so sure of that.Although they may linger on a government can survive sleaze and scandal - what really could really fell the New Labour Redwood is the looming economic crisis. We see over and over again in PMQs that when Brown is stuck for a defence to Cameron's baiting he always resorts to the "10 years of economic stability" gag. How much longer will he be able to use that one?We all know that benign global conditions, deliberately low interest rates, a buoyant housing market and cheap labour have kept inflation low and credit flowing. This all about to come to an abrupt end as the markets re-adjust. Brown will blame world wide conditions for his economic troubles yet he still refuses to acknowledge their major role in the economic growth over the last 10 years - something he solely takes credit for.Brown's (perceive Read more:problems
Nick Clegg gets his hands on Lib Dem tiara 2007-12-18 16:39:00 That clever cheeky chappy known for making housewives blush has, by a mere 500 votes, won the title of Lib Dem Leader. Now what?Others are speculating about what this will do for the Lib Dems but what about wider politics? As the current situation stands, both opposition parties have a young charismatic leader who looks good on daytime TV. Brown doesn't. The Tories are ecstatic about polling higher than (almost) ever before and the Lib Dems are excited about a possible return to three party politics. Labour is depressed. Both Nick Clegg and David Cameron seem open to new ideas - the Tories are modelling their school reforms on Sweden. Brown is in a bunker.Maybe Nick Clegg's election will just make it more blindingly obvious the severe shortcomings of the incumbent PM. Maybe that's enough.
Toynbee V Porter: Get the popcorn 2007-12-17 01:05:00 Between sipping champagne and putting the World to (equal) rights, those socialists over at Guardian Towers have recently been witness to a journalistic scrap - a war of words between Henry Porter
and Poly Toynbee. As an arch champion of the New Labour cause, Poly has few friends and her attack (HERE) on Henry Porter's original article on civil liberties (HERE) was countered by another convincing dressing down from Porter today (HERE).He notes the interesting shift away from traditional left-right politics to a more libertarian-authoritarian divide. Political parties are now struggling for the centre ground and often sound the same - but this could be the issue that defines them. In light of the governments bungling centralisation and it's drastic reduction of civil liberties, this new ideology could be start to sound appealing to the electorate.However, an authoritative state that knows best is still a defining characteristic of the left while individual responsibility and self dete Read more:popcorn
Alex Salmond gains more support for Scottish independence 2007-12-17 01:02:00 A new poll for the Sunday Herald has recorded a 5% incraese in support for Scottish
independence. When asked whether Scotland should negotiate with the UK government for a settlement for independence, 40% of people agreed.Does this simply reflect the recent (illegal) antics of the Scottish Labour party (HERE and HERE) making voters willing to consider any alternative to oust Labour even if the main agenda of the only credible alternative is independence for Scotland - or is there an increasingly genuine desire to go it alone?Salmond is certainly pursuing policies to wind up those south of the border, especially the south-east. His most recent proposal are to freeze council tax. Unless the English keep cool and make a strong case for the Union, he may get his way.It's shambolic that a botched programme of devolution has threatened the Union. It's more shambolic that there's no offer of a solution from the head-in-the-sand-don't-ask-the-West-Lothian-question Labour government. Read more:gains
Recommend Site To A Friend
