Birmingham Council bungs Tories £2m

petercoe Wed Jan 31, 2007 at 01:25:37 PM GMT Print-friendly version Facebook

According to reports on Conservative Home, Birmingham's (Tory-administered) Council has bunged the Tory Pary £2million to host their 2007 Conference in the City.



Apparently, the justification for giving a political party £2million of taxpayers money is that the amount of business it will generate will greatly exceed this "investment" - the figure £25 million is mentioned.

Well, I can't see how it will raise a single penny in income for the Council - so this is a ludicrous assertion.  

If local businesses who may well benefit from the dosh pouring out of Tory delegates' and other hangers-ons' pockets, want to bribe the Conservatives, I have no problem with that: how private businesses spend their money isn't my concern.

But using taxpayers' money - including a large majority of taxpayers who do not support, let alone contribute to the Tory Party, is outrageous. I'm not sure it's even legal.

And for the record, it would have been as outrageous if Manchester Council had bunged Labour £2million to net the 2006 Conference.

Oh, and yet again, we see Lib Dems complicit in this maladministration, given that they're the larger party in Birmingham's coalition.  Typical.

Link to Conservative Home story here:
http://conservativehome.blogs.com/torydiary/2007/01/2m_subsidy_lure.html


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Birmingham Council bungs Tories £2m | 12 comments (12 topical)

Re: Birmingham Council bungs Tories £2m (#1)

by alexhilton on Wed Jan 31, 2007 at 02:04:52 PM GMT

Surely this shoud be reported to the district auditor!


Re: Birmingham Council bungs Tories £2m (#2)

by Mark Wadsworth on Wed Jan 31, 2007 at 02:28:34 PM GMT

I am delighted to see that the article seems to come out against taxpayer funding for political parties.


Re: Birmingham Council bungs Tories £2m (#3)

by petercoe on Wed Jan 31, 2007 at 05:10:22 PM GMT

I'd be delighted you're delighted Mark, were it not for one small detail: my comments don't comment on taxpayer funding for political parties.

As far as I'm aware:

  • Birmingham isn't providing money for the Lib Dems, Labour or any other party; it is a clearly partisan "investment"

  • The £2million bung was presumably not mentioned in any political manifesto at the last elections (though I suspect may figure in at least one come May...!)

  • The money is not being allocated on the basis of any objective criteria

  • The money is unregulated

All of these are issues that would be addressed under a national state funding programme.

Look, you raise a legitimate discussion and one which I am not unsympathetic too - why not start a separate discussion thread on it, Mark and we can discuss it sensibly?  

But state funding isn't what this thread is about and I think you know that.


[ Parent ]

Re: Birmingham Council bungs Tories £2m (#5)

by Mark Wadsworth on Thu Feb 01, 2007 at 01:09:06 PM GMT

It is now!


[ Parent ]

Re: Birmingham Council bungs Tories £2m (#8)

by petercoe on Thu Feb 01, 2007 at 01:41:18 PM GMT

No, it isn't.  But you clearly have an agenda to divert the discussion away from Birmingham Tories' disgraceful bunging of taxpayers' money to one political party...theirs.  

So why don't you explain what that agenda of yours is, and stop contaminating this thread with irrelevant and diversionary interventions?


[ Parent ]

Re: Birmingham Council bungs Tories £2m (#9)

by Mark Wadsworth on Fri Feb 02, 2007 at 05:18:06 PM GMT

Hang about here, the original article says that the Lib Dems are the larger party in the ruling coalition.

My agenda? I am against state funding for political parties, whether openly or covertly (as here). I concur that this appears to be a disgraceful use of council taxpayers' money.


[ Parent ]

Re: Birmingham Council bungs Tories £2m (#11)

by petercoe on Sat Feb 03, 2007 at 11:49:37 AM GMT

Fine, but the issue is that this isn't about state funding of political parties, for the reasons I mentioned above. It's about a highly dodgy bung to one party without any democratic accountability, discussion or mandate.

And yes, the Lib Dems are the larger group in the coalition...so? Do you think Birmingham Council would have bunged the Tories £2m if there had been a Lib Dem or Labour overall majority?


[ Parent ]

Re: Birmingham Council bungs Tories £2m (#12)

by Andrea on Sat Feb 03, 2007 at 01:08:23 PM GMT

"And yes, the Lib Dems are the larger group in the coalition...so?"

Aren't the tories the largest party in the Con/LD coalition in Birmingham? (both in terms of councillors and Cabinet position)


[ Parent ]

Re: Birmingham Council bungs Tories £2m (#4)

by CitizenAndreas on Thu Feb 01, 2007 at 09:59:50 AM GMT

As has been pointed out on the Conservativehome thread, £25million is the equivelant of £5,000 per delegate. Where exactly does the £25million figure come from?

Unless there is some very good explanation I'm missing here, I don't see how this money can possibly be justified.


Re: Birmingham Council bungs Tories £2m (#6)

by Mark Wadsworth on Thu Feb 01, 2007 at 01:09:30 PM GMT

Very good point!


[ Parent ]

Who else will have them? (#7)

by Mike Ion on Thu Feb 01, 2007 at 01:30:02 PM GMT

It cannot be justified - on any grounds. Having said that the city has not a single Tory MP and there are plenty of local Labour supporters who would love to have the opportunity to 'take part' in the conference in some way or other.

Outside of London which other city would want to host a Tory conference? Liverpool? No. Manchester? Don't be silly. Leeds? Newcastle?

The Tories need to move away from Bournemouth and Blackpool to present a new, dynamic image for 'Dave' - but where? Feel free to post some alternative venues.


[ Parent ]

Re: Who else will have them? (#10)

by Mark Wadsworth on Fri Feb 02, 2007 at 05:18:34 PM GMT

Round Dave's kitchen table?


[ Parent ]

Birmingham Council bungs Tories £2m | 12 comments (12 topical)