Only 3 in 10 Unite Members Would Opt In to Political FundJust 12% Would Join Labour Party

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TUESDAY, JULY 23, 2013

Only 3 in 10 Unite Members Would Opt In to Political Fund
Just 12% Would Join Labour Party

A damning Lord Ashcroft poll of Unite members out this morning. If members had to opt in to the political fund, where their membership fees go towards the Labour Party, only 30% would choose to do so. 53% say they would not. 57% want the rules changed to an opt-in system. As evidence of just how unrepresentative and anti-democratic Unite is, if members who opted in to the political fund were no longer automatically made affiliated Labour members, just 12% would join the party as an individual member. 65% of Unite members say that donating funds to Labour is not an effective way of advancing their interests. Most amusingly only 16% could name Len McCluskey when given a photo, confusing him with Sir Alex Ferguson.
Last night Miliband announced a “Special Conference” to “ensure that affiliated members are given a real choice about joining the party”. This poll shows exactly why they need to change. And exactly why they won’t…

MONDAY, JULY 22, 2013

Guardian Puts Record Straight

The Guardian has done a follow up which largely corrects the record after Guido pointed out the factual errors in their healthcare lobbying story from this morning. Namely that they had got the target audience completely wrong and that the firm organising the event wasn’t Tory leaning CTF, it was in fact Labour leaning lobbyists Westminster Advisers. A statement issued by Mark Detre from Westminster Advisers confirms the accuracy of Guido’s version of events:

“Crosby Textor Fullbrook provided research and advice into public attitudes on healthcare to H5. H5 is a predecessor to the Association of Independent Healthcare Organisations and they did that in 2010 and 2011. The arrangement between CTF and H5 ended in mid 2011. AIHO is a new organisation formed in March 2013 and has no relationship with CTF.”

Nicholas Watt at the Guardian reports that

Detre declined to comment on a report on the Guido Fawkes website that Westminster Advisers, run by the Labour supporter and former councillor Dominic Church, organised a cross-party meeting at the end of 2010 which was shown the Crosby Textor research. Detre said: “I’m not going to go into that. I have given you the statement we are giving out. That is all we are saying.”

Judge for yourself…

Lording it Up, Azerbaijani Style

With lobbying top of the agenda and  Nick Clegg on his high horse, last week Guido brought you news of a LibDem with an unusual parliamentary pass that they denied was ever used inappropriately. This morning Edward Lord has accused Guido of an “unfortunate and highly inaccurate attack”, writing to colleagues at the City of London claiming that the piece had been given a “full rebuttal”. Not quite – the word Rwanda was replaced with Uzbekistan.

Lord denies that his parliamentary pass was anything to do with his work for the  European Azerbaijan Society. On his own website he claims to have stood down from the society in November 2011, which does little to help his case given the fact that his pass sponsor, Lord Kilclooney, was flown all expenses paid to Azerbaijan in May of that year. Kilcloony even went again the following year. As the above picture shows, Edward Lord remains a strong advocate for the republic. The Mail have more on Kilcloony and other sinister connections to the country. Passes and free holidays. A coincidence, no doubt.

Chuka China Junket Fixed By Blairite Cronies

With “close friends” of Tony Blair laying it on thick for Chuka over the weekend, interesting that the Shadow Business Secretary is off on a junket to China tomorrow organised by a group with particularly close links to the former PM. Chuka’s four day trip comes courtesy of Chinese for Labour(CfL), a well-funded organisation that seeks to recruit Chinese Britons to the party, promises access to Labour MPs and offers financial assistance to potential candidates. Manchurian, presumably.
CfL are chaired by Sonny Leong, a publisher who seems to spend his time spinning for the communist Chinese government when he is not personally donating tens of thousands of pounds to the Labour Party. CfL’s patrons include Cherie Blair, David Miliband and former Blair fixer Ian McCartney. On its executive committee sits Lady Katy Tse Blair (right), wife of Tony’s brother Bill. CfL has organised recent trips to China for Blairite Shadow Cabinet ministers Liam Byrne and Douglas Alexander. Worth noting that Blair has earned hundreds of thousands of pounds from his links to the country. He clearly has a soft spot for the Chinese…

“Crosby Presentation” Organised By Labour Lobbyist
Labour MPs Attended Event Held in Commons

The Guardian, which likes to boast that they give “the whole picture”, are very excited this morning with the suggestion that “The lobbying firm founded by the Tories’ chief election strategist, Lynton Crosby, advised private healthcare providers on how to exploit perceived “failings” in the NHS, according to a leaked document obtained by the Guardian. The presentation was made by Crosby Textor, known as CTF Partners in Britain, towards the end of 2010.” The timing is right, just who the presentation was actually made to has been conveniently left out of the story.
The Guardian claims that the “leaked” presentation was made by CTF to private healthcare profiteers, it was actually organised by the lobbying firm Westminster Advisers for MPs - who were all given copies – making it more of a handout than a leak. Westminster Advisers is headed by Dominic Church, a wealthy Labour supporter and a former Hammersmith and Fulham councillor for the party. He is a Blairiteprivate healthcare lobbyist…
Church lobbies for the H5 Private Hospitals Alliance. The slideshow was shown at their parliamentary reception themed ‘Improving Britain’s healthcare’ on 29 November 2010 in the House of Commons. The invitation was open to all MPs and Guido understands that many Labour MPs enjoyed the hospitality served in Dining Room A. One attendee remembers seeing, for example, Gisela Stuart at the event. CTF merely providing polling data for the report. It was a briefing for MPs by private healthcare, not a briefing to private healthcare.

Mysteriously there is plenty missing from slideshow the Guardian have published. They have run just 4 pages out of the 31 slide presentation, leaving out what does not fit the story. Take this page for example which is positive about the NHS, and inconveniently shows – for theGuardian’s preferred narrative – that the public back reforms:

Nowhere is this to be seen on the Guardian website. Despite cutting pages, they have re-numbered the 4 pages so you would never know. Guido senses a lengthy Corrections and Clarifications coming tomorrow…
Full presentation:

View this document on Scribd

UPDATE:

Rise of the EMOs

After the rise of the Special Advisors – known throughout Whitehall as SpAds – Westminster is preparing for an influx of “Extended Ministerial Office Staff”. Thanks to reforms proposed by Frankie Maude, to ministers’ offices, lots more political roles will be created: beware of young EMOS.Black eyeliner and piercings will be optional.

Tory MP Reports Mandy’s Logging Lobbying to Lords

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Priti Patel has written to the Lords Commissioner for Standards asking him to investigate whetherMandy’s failure to declare his work for Asia Pulp and Paper broke lobbying rules.
It’s going to be a tough one to explain…