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Tory corruption & sleaze (lobbying, second jobs, dodgy contracts etc)

Tony L said:
Kwasi Kwatang now suggesting Kathryn Stone, the commissioner of the Parliamentary Standards Committee who noticed corrupt corporate shill Owen Patterson had stuffed half a million quid in his back pocket should ‘consider her position’. Defending the indefensible as ever. I hope Kwatang gets paid serious money as whenever he’s on TV he’s inevitably making a total prick of himself.

I guess they have to destroy and rig Parliamentary Standards legislation as the whole party is rotten to the core and Johnson himself has much to be scrutinised. I doubt this has anything much to do with Patterson pocketing half a £million as that’s small change to these criminals. This move is to ring-fence the whole corrupt party from the existing law of the land. They just see the suicide of Patterson’s wife as a useful tool to be politically exploited. The rest of Westminster need to stand absolutely firm and block boycott any changes. Ensure any change is seen as the banana republic corruption it is. They need to have no part in it at all. This is 100% Tory shit, let them drown in it.
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The suicide of Patterson’s wife is a tragic loss. But as Patterson himself has said the investigation into his undenied corruption (I’ve yet to hear the grounds on which Patterson is innocent of the charges against him) was a contributor factor in his wife’s suicide, surely we need to know how much? Did his wife feel, as he has said, that the investigation was determined to find him guilty of something? If so, what we’re the other things he was being investigated against which the investigation for that breaching lobbying rules was the something else?

I feel very sorry for the awful loss of Patterson’s wife, but the fact that Patterson himself has raised the question, then answers surely need to be sought
 
Ponty said:
I don’t think many politicians are in realty. I also can’t support a party which entered into illegal wars.
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I would agree withn that, but it wouldn't have been much use turning to the opposition at the time. More of them voted for it.

I am genuinely interested, given that I always view elections as a "least bad" kind of choice rather than an enthusiatic act of endorsement - what does Starmer have to do to get your support away from an option that is quite obviously and totally corrupt? There are lots of things that I might not agree with Starmer over but I cannot possibly accept that he is a worse option than Johnson's UKIP.
 
SteveS1 said:
I do hope this does not stop the investigations, if we have any journalists left, of where Randox are in this. There is a much bigger set of questions than have so far been asked about their involvement with the Paterson, Hancock, on the Pandemic funding. In Horse Racing Paterson's wife and Aintree (Randox big sponsors, Dido Harding's connections with same through The Jockey Club). I would like to know a lot more about all these little connections.
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Yes, why did Johnson order a three line whip? Paterson is just a useful idiot- all eyes are on him and his misconduct. What will be interesting is if Johnson decides to flip him over and stick a fork in him in another sleight of hand.
 
ks.234 said:
For all the thousands of words I’ve heard calling for natural justice and a right of appeal, I’ve heard none saying what Patterson’s grounds for such an appeal would be. He was found guilty of the most egregious breach of parliamentary rules on lobbying. If he is t guilty as found, what are the grounds on which he is innocent?
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Handy explainer from The Guardian here:

https://www.theguardian.com/politic...-his-claims-and-how-they-stack-up-in-analysis

All seems paper-thin (though it's possible The Guardian isn't presenting the strongest version of his case) but that's what Patterson claims.
 
droodzilla said:
Also, don't the Daily Mail and The Times bat for Gove or Sunak? Johnson is a creature of The Telegraph, which has a rather different take on the story today.
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That's more likely, certainly more likely than an attempt to undermine faith in democracy.

Ex-remainer Geordie Greig is no fan / friend of Boris Johnson.
 
ks.234 said:
For all the thousands of words I’ve heard calling for natural justice and a right of appeal, I’ve heard none saying what Patterson’s grounds for such an appeal would be. He was found guilty of the most egregious breach of parliamentary rules on lobbying. If he is t guilty as found, what are the grounds on which he is innocent?
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He is trying to say that all the evidence was not heard due to Parliamentary Privilege which he is bound by. The only option for appealand to hear this 'new' evidence is if he gives up his seat which I suspect is the real reason for this shamble scramble.
At the time it was said that his wife was suffering from long Covid which she, and thousands of others, caught at Cheltenham which was an event that she was responsible for. This also ties in Dido, Handcock, and her husband
 
@Brian will be along soon to tell us that it was a democratic vote yesterday, and we should go along with the result, even if we don't like it. That's how the system works.

I have written to my Tory MP (for the third time this year) but I don't expect much result as she's angling for the top job in due course. Our local paper will get a full postbag too.
 
droodzilla said:
Also, don't the Daily Mail and The Times bat for Gove or Sunak? Johnson is a creature of The Telegraph, which has a rather different take on the story today.
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Ian Dunt's piece is very strong

"But the key fact is this: there is no conceivable standards system which would have reached a different conclusion in the Paterson case. And if there was, it would not be a functioning standards system. Because under any definition of the rules Paterson is guilty as charged. He is bang to rights."
 
ks.234 said:
The suicide of Patterson’s wife is a tragic loss. But as Patterson himself has said the investigation into his undenied corruption (I’ve yet to hear the grounds on which Patterson is innocent of the charges against him) was a contributor factor in his wife’s suicide, surely we need to know how much? Did his wife feel, as he has said, that the investigation was determined to find him guilty of something? If so, what we’re the other things he was being investigated against which the investigation for that breaching lobbying rules was the something else?

I feel very sorry for the awful loss of Patterson’s wife, but the fact that Patterson himself has raised the question, then answers surely need to be sought
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To my mind the suicide of Patterson’s wife is a topic no one should touch, let alone capitalise upon. The Tories are clearly dirty enough players to go there, but the rest of Westminster shouldn’t IMHO. Just make it clear that a fundamentally corrupt political party are happy to use a woman’s suicide as a bargaining chip to excuse the obvious criminality of an MP and leave it as that. It is just scum being scum.
 
This from 38 Degrees was in my emails this morning. I have signed
it’s breaking news. Today the government is trying to take control of the independent process that disciplines MPs. They are hoping to create a new committee - which the Conservative Party would control - to develop new rules for how MPs are scrutinised for their actions. [1] It would mean MPs marking their own homework.

Independent scrutiny can help stop MPs doing things like being paid vast sums of money to lobby the government on behalf of private companies. And if they do, it can hold them to account.

This power grab follows an independent report which accused an MP of breaking lobbying rules. The government rejected the findings - which has never happened before - and now wants to take over the entire process. [2]

We can’t let this happen . The public need more - not less - faith in independent processes which can help protect our democracy. The answer is not to put all the power in the government’s hands.

This is all over the news right now, MPs of all sides are speaking out about how bad it looks. If thousands of us sign a petition today showing that we expect proper scrutiny for any MPs who break the rules, it could make them reverse their plans.

this story is developing right now. Will you sign the petition today telling the government to stop their power grab and keep scrutiny of MPs behaviour independent? It’ll just take 30 seconds!

https://speakout.38degrees.org.uk/c...utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=blast2021-11-03
 
Tony L said:
To my mind the suicide of Patterson’s wife is a topic no one should touch, let alone capitalise upon. The Tories are clearly dirty enough players to go there, but the rest of Westminster shouldn’t IMHO. Just make it clear that a fundamentally corrupt political party are happy to use a woman’s suicide as a bargaining chip to clear obvious criminality of an MP and leave it as that. It is just scum being scum.
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Chris Bryant (Chair of the Standards Committee, I think) addressed this well (and sensitively) in his speech yesterday. The whole speech is worth listening to if you can find it - it's a calm and comprehensive statement of the facts of Patterson's case, which are entirely damning.
 
Seeker_UK said:
That's more likely, certainly more likely than an attempt to undermine faith in democracy.

Ex-remainer Geordie Greig is no fan / friend of Boris Johnson.
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Bit of both, I think. It is certainly a long-term right-wing project (arguably, the long-term project) to undermine trust in politics as a whole. Apathetiv electorates tend to take what they're given, no matter how shitty it is.
 
Seeker_UK said:
That's more likely, certainly more likely than an attempt to undermine faith in democracy.

Ex-remainer Geordie Greig is no fan / friend of Boris Johnson.
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The DM is no friend of democracy in any meaningful sense - not even the wooliest of liberals would make that claim.
 
gavreid said:
The DM is no friend of democracy in any meaningful sense - not even the wooliest of liberals would make that claim.
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Whatever political structure the DM supports, it doesn't want Boris Johnson in charge of it.
 
One of the parties involved in bunging a bob to Paterson, Lynn’s Country Foods-here with one of their other friends. £39m gross profits on a turnover of £140. Not bad for pig meat, plenty left over to oil the wheels.



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Nero said:
@Brian will be along soon to tell us that it was a democratic vote yesterday, and we should go along with the result, even if we don't like it. That's how the system works.

I have written to my Tory MP (for the third time this year) but I don't expect much result as she's angling for the top job in due course. Our local paper will get a full postbag too.
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I’ve written to mine but as it’s Liz Truss I’m not sure she’ll be able to understand some of the long words.
 
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