I haven't t bought a paper in years ....despite what some think ....but I do think we've become inured to all these scandals ....especially in the days of 24 hour rolling news  there is always another *good* story around the corner  

There is also a story today about members of parliament employing members of their families and paying them about £7500 more than the average person would get doing a similar job.

The list contains people from all parties.

There is a difference between balanced journalism and what the BBC now report. the BBC utterly disgust me. I'm suprised Laura Tory Liar isn't blaming Corbyn, Loads of replies to her effort to claim 29 times a mistake and 12 so far been referred to the police. This wasn't a one off mistake is was systematic cheating and now they have the boundary changes through it will be very difficult to get anyone else into power.  By the way, the Electoral Commision are limited in the fines they can give, they said today on Radio 4 if the had more powers the fines would have been far higher. 

Laura Kuenssberg‏Verified account @bbclaurak 5h

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Jon Snows opinion of the BBC 

Jon Snow‏Verified account @jonsnowC4

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With exception of Andrew Neil, one wonders why the BBC so agresseively avoided looking into the Tory Election expnses scandal for so long

 

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3:44 AM - 16 Mar 2017

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Even as Snow issued his comment, BBC Political Editor Laura Kuenssberg was under fire for repeatedly branding the election expenses irregularities “mistakes”. This is despite Claire Bassett, Chief Executive of the Electoral Commission, explicitly saying on BBC Radio 4 [2.15] that the intent of the Conservative Party is a matter for the police. So whether it was officially deliberate is still under the separate, ongoing police investigation.

Electoral Commission

Concluding its 10-month-long probe into the Tories’ national spending, the Electoral Commission fined the multi-millionaire Conservative Party a meagre £70,000. £45,000 for spending return inaccuracies in three 2014 by-elections, £20,000 for such inaccuracies in the 2015 general election, and the final £5,000 for missing receipts and invoices. Significantly, Claire Bassett said that she would have imposed larger fines on the Conservative Party if the Electoral Commission had the power to do so.

The Commission also referred the Conservative Party’s former Treasurer to the Metropolitan Police. The Treasurer signed off the party’s general election national spending return, which was “neither complete nor correct”.

Police

The real repercussions will come to light when the police forces conclude their separate investigations into local spending. There are two strict spending limits in UK parliamentary elections: national and local. The allegations centre on the Conservatives recording local expenditure under the national limit, or not recording spending at all.

Currently, there are 29 seats under police investigation. The looming results could trigger a number of by-elections, threatening the Conservatives’ majority in parliament.

Around two dozen Tory MPs face accusations that they illegally overspent in the 2015 general election campaign. One part of the ongoing investigation is the failure to declare costs associated with the Conservative campaign ‘battle buses’. If the allegations are true, the MPs and their agents could face a year in jail and/or an unlimited fine. In addition, there could be a three-year ban on their holding elected office.

Now, 12 police forces have passed files onto the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

The wider allegations go beyond the battle buses. They includes hotel expenditure, leaflets, letters signed by Cameron himself, along with food and transport for activists.

without the internet..probably this wouldnt have even come to light-so this sh!te has probably gone on for years-involving all parties

in reality

this should be enough evidence to bring down the tories

yet

thats not happening

they go on

May & that goofy bloke sit there & laugh

and

we let them

i dont get it?

I've know about it over 12 months, the BBC chose to ignore it...but, it's stuffed to the rafters with Tories now, so no surprise. I don;t think it's gone on previously, or if it did not tothe scale it happened in 2015, The Battle Bus was the issue, it went all over full of tory canvassers and it wasn't recorded nor the hotel bills and meals or certain printed pamphlets. All thee bills were paid for from a private address, it was blatant fraud and top people new about it, including Davey Boy  

The press and broadcasters and doing their damndest to keep the tories in power, the last thing they want is a fair society. They want to keep their off shore havens, bonuses, workers rights stopped, sick pay, maternity pay and all that will be at risk after Brexit and that will suit the Tories 

Interesting experiment last year and I can honestly say I have seen this happen so many times..it's a good couple of minutes watch. Some of them were appalled to even think they agreed with the policies 

velvet donkey posted:

Revealed: Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell's close IRA ...

Everyone and their fathers knew JC and MCDonnell were paving the way for talks, that doesn't make them sympathisers. If it does, include Willie Whitelaw on your list (secret talks in 1971) and Margaret Thatcher with operation Soon in 1982...well agree to disagree on this one Velvet, and at the end of the day it was talks that brought about the Good Friday agreement. 

velvet donkey posted:

And Kuenssberg disnae come from a family of idiots however you portray it    

I never said she came from a family of idiots, still doesn't make her a good impartial reporter.... I knew I shouldn't have got involved in this thread. 

na

velvet donkey posted:

Corbyn and McDonnell were terrorist sympathisers.

 

So, in the words of Duncan Bannantyne - I'm oot.

nah, trying to talk sh!t out with nutcases dont make you a sympathiser it means someone is chatting so i can avoid getting blown the f*ck up

if one of them says they should get a medal (or summat) it means to me that they recognise both sides of the sh!tty argument

velvet donkey posted:

You keep believing that.

 

Funny how a person's heroes can do no wrong.

 

Their hand was in the till and the chickens came home to roost.

Velvet, they're not heroes. They're just trying to make a better world for everyone, and it annoys me that people can't see that 

Well....maybe if we hadn't waded in there and tried to impose our will..... just sayin. 

It's like the Raj and things/places like that. How many countries did we try and 'conquer'  this Great Britain of ours