Contributions
669 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated Associationsrose —27 Feb 2019HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated AssociationsI will briefly, yes.27 Feb 2019HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated AssociationsI will not, no. The Committee stated that “this Committee and the wider public have no way of investigating the source of the £435,000 donation to the DUP made on behalf of the…27 Feb 2019HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated AssociationsNot at the moment, no. That was a vast sum for a party whose election expenses do not normally even get past five figures. Some £280,000 of that donation was spent on a…27 Feb 2019HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated AssociationsIt sounds like “Better Together”. The case that proves my argument beyond doubt is the unincorporated association that Richard Cook leads: the Constitutional Research Council, or…27 Feb 2019HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated AssociationsPerhaps I can remind the Chamber that my hon. Friend’s name is Brendan O’Hara. I totally agree with him and commend those who have assisted in exposing dark money to the light.…27 Feb 2019HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated AssociationsI beg to move, That this House has considered the role of unincorporated associations in electoral funding. It is very good to see you in the Chair, Ms Dorries; I believe this is…27 Feb 2019HANSARDJammu and KashmirBecause of the conflict global markets are now trading lower, with Asian investors seeking sanctuary in either the yen or the Swiss franc. Can the Minister give UK investors…27 Feb 2019HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated AssociationsNo. As someone who worked for many years in the third sector in my constituency, I know very well— [Interruption.] Perhaps hon. Members will listen, rather than asking for an…27 Feb 2019HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated AssociationsNo.27 Feb 2019HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated AssociationsOnce again, no. Political parties do this, of course. My own SNP branches—Clydebank, Dumbarton and the mighty Vale of Leven—make donations to the party, and vice versa, but the…27 Feb 2019HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated AssociationsAgain, no, I will not. [Interruption.] One moment. It turns out that using UAs and similar convenient legal fictions to funnel dark money into our political system is the favoured…27 Feb 2019HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated AssociationsIt does not surprise me, because the leader of the Scottish Conservative party has never even responded to my request in terms of a letter about dark money.27 Feb 2019HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated AssociationsNo, I will not at the moment. I am going to make some progress, because I know we are short of time. Let us be quite open: news outlets such as openDemocracy and the Ferret have…27 Feb 2019HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated AssociationsNo. I think that we are all very rapidly— [Interruption.] If this is a debate, perhaps a member of the Democratic Unionist party should have been here, rather than members of the…27 Feb 2019HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated AssociationsNo. I think that we are all very rapidly— [Interruption.] One moment. I think that we are all very rapidly becoming aware, if we were not already, that the current regulations and…27 Feb 2019HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated AssociationsNo. This Government have undoubtedly allowed that to happen to our political system, with dark money now flooding unhindered through it. Dark money is a cancer in our political…27 Feb 2019HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated AssociationsNo. And we must be—27 Feb 2019HANSARDElectoral Funding: Unincorporated AssociationsNo. We must be unflinching in our determination to root this out. As Oliver Bullough writes near the end of “Moneyland”, political parties have been guilty of accepting money when…27 Feb 2019HANSARDDraft Law Enforcement and Security (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019We will not vote against these regulations, but does the hon. Gentleman agree that they do not replace the fundamentally important European arrest warrant? The warrant has…27 Feb 2019