"Bought like a banana republic"

[davek]

...Lib Dem leader, Nick Clegg, on the Tories double standards over them taking millions off the tax evader, "Lord" Ashcroft.

BBC News - Lord Ashcroft admits 'non-dom' tax status

Ashcroft, who's bankrolling the Tory Party election campaign, says he'll switch from a 'non-dom' tax-payer only if the Tories win the election! That's some commitment.

So here's the Tories, who are trying to avoid being typecast as the party of privilege, who's "patriotic duty" it is to unseat Labour (they now claim), with their hands out to a billionaire for election funding in exchange for his title and a seat in the House of Lords....a feller who's that patriotic he wont pay the full tax rate.

Disgusting bunch of chancers. Imagine the levels of corruption if these chinless tvvats took power.

 

[Dylan]

Disgusting bunch of chancers. Imagine the levels of corruption if these chinless tvvats took power.

Nice bypassing of the filter there

 

[GrandOldTeam]

You shouldn't be applauding that Dylan....

 

[Hayee]

Just proves that we're all gonna have to Vote Labour to keep them out

 

[ToffeeDan]

Hobson's Bloody Choice this next election

 

[Goat]

Hobson's Bloody Choice this next election

Which party is he running for? Cos quite frankly, theres not a lot to choose from. :huh:

 

[ToffeeDan]

Which party is he running for? Cos quite frankly, theres not a lot to choose from. :huh:

Politics in this country is one almighty mess.. No one can honestly look back on the past 40 odd years and say that Government has been a force for positive change for the majority of people in many directions. The record of both the Tory Government (79-97) and the present Labour Government (97-present day) is lamentable.

 

[davek]

I see what Clegg was talking about now regarding 'banana republics':

Belize dealings
"Lord Ashcroft's dealings in Belize have also generated controversy in the past, with some politicians in the central American country having suggested an influence that has been far from healthy.
The tycoon made large donations - rumoured to total about $1m - to the right-wing People's United Party (PUP) when it was in opposition.
In 1998 the PUP came to power after defeating the centre-left United Democratic Party (UDP), and subsequently introduced several pieces of legislation financially advantageous to Lord Ashcroft.
They included a law giving tax-exempt status to some companies including his offshore holding company Belize Holding Inc (BHI).
The Lord Ashcroft-owned Bank of Belize was also granted the exclusive right to set up offshore companies in Belize for US and UK citizens.
In an interview with a British newspaper around the time, Manuel Esquivel, the UDP leader and Belize's former prime minister, urged UK voters to beware.
"What happened to us should be a lesson to you," he said.



Worships Thatcher....



'Tory principles'
Lord Ashcroft has been Tory deputy chairman since 2005, having previously been party treasurer from 1998 to 2001.
As treasurer, responsible for fund-raising, Mr Ashcroft is said to have widened the party's pool of donors and allowed it to recruit more staff.
The now powerful party figure is credited with devising its marginal seat strategy, pouring resources into constituencies where Labour MPs are defending small majorities.
He has published several books including, in 2005, Smell the Coffee: A wake-up call for the Conservative Party.
A friend of the Thatcher family, he has said that he became a donor to the party "because of my admiration for the policies of Margaret Thatcher".
"I give the money because I support the Tory principles of free markets and personal liberty. And I do not seek anything for myself beyond the return of a Conservative government."





What a nice feller. I wonder if he likes the swings?

 

[ToffeeDan]

Dave, at least Clegg and the Lib Dems tell it how it is.. (Iraq for example).

 

[davek]

Dave, at least Clegg and the Lib Dems tell it how it is.. (Iraq for example).

I'd never vote for the Tory second 11, tbh. They have some progressive policies though. If there's a hung Parliament I'd like to see the Lib-Dems get their way in demanding some form of PR for their support in government. Our system is archaic.

 

[Brownie]

Alright dave.

 

[davek]

Alright dave.

...

 

[Bruce Wayne]

Just proves that we're all gonna have to Vote Labour to keep them out

Because they didn't sell peerages for cash did they

Cash for Honours - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

They're all dodgy feckers. Lets not pretend one party is purer than the other.

 

[davek]

Because they didn't sell peerages for cash did they

Cash for Honours - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

They're all dodgy feckers. Lets not pretend one party is purer than the other.

Do they all accept peerages on the promise that they change their tax status and then renege on that promise? And do they all have places in their party's hierarchy masterminding an election campaign?

I think not.

A man who sees Belize (a country he's represented in the UN) as his home is trying to aid an election victory in this country.

Oh dear. Looks like the Tories have left this ticking bomb to detonate in their faces with two months or so to polling day.

 

[Bruce Wayne]

No, they just loaned money to the party in return for peerages. Cmon Dave, I know you're being partisan here but Labour aren't any cleaner. I dare say the Lib Dems would have been just as corrupt had they any power to sell.