Inquiry launched into Putney Tory donor

The Electoral Commission is - at last - investigating the Belize billionaire who contributed thousands of pounds to Putney Conservatives in the run-up to the last General Election.

Lord Ashcroft, who operates out of Belize refuses to disclose whether he pays tax here in the UK. British electoral law bans donations to political parties from non-British nationals or companies not trading here. But Lord Ashcroft uses a registered British company called Bearwood Commercial Services to channel over £3.6 million of funds to Justine Greening and dozens of other Tory candidates.

It is at best questionable whether this sort of bending of the rules meets the letter of the law (hence the inquiry) but it certainly does not comply with the spirit of it. There is nothing wrong with anyone making political contributions but there is a great deal wrong with non British nationals interfering in - some might say rigging - our elections with overseas cash.

If the Electoral Commission's investigation finds that the Conservatives have broken the law then Justine Greening and Putney Conservatives should be obliged to repay every single penny of the £19,733 they took from this source.

£19,000 may not sound that much in the context of the £3m+ given in total, but in context, constituency political parties like Putney's are only allowed to spend about £10,000 once a general election has been called - so Lord Ashcroft not only paid for their entire campaign but gave them £9k on top!

Below is the register of contributions to Justine Greening and Putney Conservatives since 2003: you can check for yourself by visiting the Electoral Commission site and, in Name of registered political party scrolling down to "Conservative And Unionist Party", and in Received by typing "Putney". You can also do the same for Putney Labour Party.

Anyone who believes in a level playing field should be concerned about Lord Ashcroft's influence, and relieved that this is finally being investigated by the Electoral Commission.