Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose...

jejv

In older news:

CiB

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...........

People believe what they want to believe I suppose. Just heard The World At One and it sounds like a non-story by now.

Still. Carry on. We had 11 years of pointing & laughing at blair, mandelson & brown, so you may as well have your turn.

rjsterry

Does seem to match the previous version with Liam Fox - i.e. people promising access to the top that they can't actually deliver. I wonder whether they know they can't but think they might make a few quid by pretending, or actually think that they do have the influence.

raymondo60

I'm surpised that anyone is surprised......

bigmat

Not at all surprising. I'm sure all parties are at it, but its a pretty weak response from the Tory boys to just say "Labour do it too" which is what I've been hearing since the story broke. Do you think its acceptable or not? If not, what are you going to do about it?

cyclingprop

rjsterry wrote:

Does seem to match all politicians - i.e. people promising access to the top that they can't actually deliver. I wonder whether they know they can't but think they might make a few quid by pretending, or actually think that they do have the influence.

FTFY.

rjsterry

cyclingprop wrote:

rjsterry wrote:

Does seem to match all politicians - i.e. people promising access to the top that they can't actually deliver. I wonder whether they know they can't but think they might make a few quid by pretending, or actually think that they do have the influence.

FTFY.

Many, yes, but I'm not so cynical as to say all, yet. Trouble is the less grasping ones tend to be destined for a life on the back benches.

notsoblue

BigMat wrote:

Not at all surprising. I'm sure all parties are at it, but its a pretty weak response from the Tory boys to just say "Labour do it too" which is what I've been hearing since the story broke. Do you think its acceptable or not? If not, what are you going to do about it?

+1, Its a really tired response.

greg66_tri_v2.0

Political party funding: nightmare. As usual we lag behind our American cousins in most things to do with money and marketing, but if you look at how much (and how) their Presidential candidates raise and spend it will make your blood run cold.

And yet what message does it convey? It tells me that the candidate party has a skill at extracting and spending the maximum sum they possibly can. And yet they want me to let them be in charge of taxation and Government spending.

You need a cap. How it works is a whole different game. But I would like to see a capped fund. "We'll give you each £x, and we'll judge you partly on how well you spend it". Shouldn't that be a basic test for anyone who wants to run a country?

rick_chasey

notsoblue wrote:

BigMat wrote:

Not at all surprising. I'm sure all parties are at it, but its a pretty weak response from the Tory boys to just say "Labour do it too" which is what I've been hearing since the story broke. Do you think its acceptable or not? If not, what are you going to do about it?

+1, Its a really tired response.

It's to stop people making party political capital out of it.

All parties do it. Tories do it, Labour do it, the Lib Dems get £2.4m from professional fraudsters.

Stop people giving them cash for anything.

Then there'll be no more 'cash-for' scandals.

rjsterry

Rick Chasey wrote:

notsoblue wrote:

BigMat wrote:

Not at all surprising. I'm sure all parties are at it, but its a pretty weak response from the Tory boys to just say "Labour do it too" which is what I've been hearing since the story broke. Do you think its acceptable or not? If not, what are you going to do about it?

+1, Its a really tired response.

It's to stop people making party political capital out of it.

All parties do it. Tories do it, Labour do it, the Lib Dems get £2.4m from professional fraudsters.

Stop people giving them cash for anything.

Then there'll be no more 'cash-for' scandals.

People will still try and buy influence. Why would they not?

rick_chasey

rjsterry wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

notsoblue wrote:

BigMat wrote:

Not at all surprising. I'm sure all parties are at it, but its a pretty weak response from the Tory boys to just say "Labour do it too" which is what I've been hearing since the story broke. Do you think its acceptable or not? If not, what are you going to do about it?

+1, Its a really tired response.

It's to stop people making party political capital out of it.

All parties do it. Tories do it, Labour do it, the Lib Dems get £2.4m from professional fraudsters.

Stop people giving them cash for anything.

Then there'll be no more 'cash-for' scandals.

People will still try and buy influence. Why would they not?

Of course.

But what's wrong with making it more difficult for people to influence politicians with cash?

I think everyone agrees that we want politicians to be persuaded by arguments and good quality evidence, not cash.

notsoblue

Greg66 wrote:

Political party funding: nightmare. As usual we lag behind our American cousins in most things to do with money and marketing, but if you look at how much (and how) their Presidential candidates raise and spend it will make your blood run cold.

And yet what message does it convey? It tells me that the candidate party has a skill at extracting and spending the maximum sum they possibly can. And yet they want me to let them be in charge of taxation and Government spending.

You need a cap. How it works is a whole different game. But I would like to see a capped fund. "We'll give you each £x, and we'll judge you partly on how well you spend it". Shouldn't that be a basic test for anyone who wants to run a country?

This would be a great system. The way current political party funding works leads to a situation where money buys political influence. Which is a pretty natural state of affairs really, when you think about it. I'd like to see us go against that though.