A plague

There is something very tawdry going on in British politics and the stains are spreading out to affect and indeed infect the whole House.

In the dying days of the Major administration, Tony Bliar stood up and accused them of being ‘mired in sleaze’ (which they were) and said that he would do things differently, he promised that he would cut sleaze out of politics. Soon after coming to power he passed legislation making it compulsory for parties to declare all donations over £5,000. So far so good. What he failed to tell us was that ‘loans’ of any sum would not have to be declared and guess what? Instead of touting for donations from rich individuals they started touting for ‘loans’.

Here’s a list of 12 people who between them have loaned the Labour Party – sorry ‘New Labour’ a total of £13,950,000. Sleazy? Open to interpretation maybe, bending the rules, but don’t we all do that from time to time? Then we found out that 4 of these people had been nominated for peerages. The Power Commission said this month that every Labour donor who had given more than a million pounds had received a knighthood or a peerage. One or two others withdrew their nominations, the chairman of C(r)apita resigned over the matter although he insisted he’d done nothing wrong and he didn’t have a guilty conscience. No, not at all. Innocent people resign hastily all the time. I’m sure the Metropolitan Police who are investigating the allegations of ‘cash for honours’ will find no wrongdoing. Actually, considering the arse who runs the Met Police I think we can guarantee that they will find no wrongdoing.

Instead of dealing with this in a mature, honourable way Labour took to just spreading the mud around. OK they said, we’ve been a bit naughty but so have the Tories and the Lib Dems. They’re just as guilty.

Is this a defence? Does that make it all right? If me and the gang get pissed after poker on Friday night, knock up a few Molotov’s and invaded France if the big boys across the street tell us it’s OK, would that be alright with Tony? Because that’s a rough analogy of his invasion of Iraq. Blair invaded a country that posed no threat to the UK, so why shouldn’t I?

Fortunately the Electoral Commission have a bit more sense than me and have issued a warning that they are determined to get to the truth of what has happened. Genuine loans they say, may not need to be declared but loans with no repayment date, loans accruing no interest, loans that roll over, should be. Their reasoning is sound – that parties must “demonstrate to voters that [they] have nothing to hide.” Let’s wait and see shall we. Anything to hide Tony?

The media are also reporting that the deadlock between the Commons and the Lords over ID cards has been broken. Hurrah thought I, progress has been made in fighting this insane, illiberal idea. The government had wanted people who apply for a passport to automatically get an ID card at the same time. Under the great new ‘compromise’ however your details will still go onto the National ID Database but you don’t have to have an ID card. Until 2010.

What a crock. That’s not a compromise that’s a full surrender. A delayed surrender maybe, but a surrender all the same. I’ve commented in previous ID card posts how odd it was for an old lefty to be hanging his hopes on the House of Lords. It was never a comfortable thing to do, I always felt grubby afterwards. And it seems I was right. (I hate being right all the time.)

I’m off for a bath. A Domestos bath. If anybody wants to scrub my back with a scouring pad or a stiff broom, I’ll be in there a while.