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CPS criteria for election fraud prosecutions

“Proceedings for major infringements will normally be in the public interest.

Proceedings for other infringements may not be in the public interest in situations where:

the offence is of a “technical” nature which does not infringe the spirit of the legislation;

the offence was committed as a result of a genuine mistake or misunderstanding;

the offence could not have influenced the result of the election process; or
the offender has remedied any breach of the law.

If the offence falls to be considered under one or more of the criteria above, the matter may be dealt by way of a caution administered by the police or, where appropriate, the provisions of advice as to an individual’s future conduct.

In practice, it may be difficult to prove that the result of an election has been affected by an infringement. However, the fact that a breach has or may have affected the result of an election is a factor to be taken into consideration in deciding whether proceedings should be instigated.

Whilst every case will of course turn on its own facts, where there is clear evidence that a breach has affected the result or is likely to have done so, the public interest is more likely to require a prosecution – even if the infringement itself is relatively minor.”

Dr Mark Pack notes:

“It’s worth in particular noting that a few of the more common reasons that crop up on online chatter either from Conservatives, or reported as being said by Conservatives, do not feature in the criteria.

In particular, the fact that someone might have secured re-election before a court case could proceed against them is not a factor.

Moreover, prosecutions are not restricted to proceeding only on the basis that the offence altered the election result. That’s only required for one very specific set of legal action, which isn’t what’s at stake in the current cases involving so many Conservative MPs.”

http://www.markpack.org.uk/149609/cps-prosecution-guidelines-election-offences/

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MPs: time for jobs transparency – well, that’s if you feel like it

The Sunday Telegraph says that Theresa May’s “ethics adviser” (an oxymoron if ever there was one!) says General Election candidates should be “as open as possible” and should publish what income streams they currently have and what paid jobs and be clear about whether these would continue if they enter Parliament.

Trouble is, some of our potential MPs find it impossible to be open.

And the punishment for that? Nothing – zero – nada.

Bang go the ethics.

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Anti-corruption independent takes on Home Secretary implicated in election fraud allegations in General Election

“Home Secretary Amber Rudd was one of the original MPs named in the Tory election fraud scandal. And she is in for a nasty surprise during her general election campaign. Because she will be forced to debate the issue live, in front of the public – whether she likes it or not.

Corruption everywhere

Nicholas Wilson is a banking whistleblower. He exposed millions of pounds of “unreasonable” customer charges by HSBC. That led to a ruling by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on 20 January this year to force the bank to pay back £4m to 6,700 customers after wrongly charging interest on credit card debt.

But Wilson believes the true amount HSBC owes is £1bn.

Taking on Rudd

Now, Wilson is taking on Tory election fraud, among other things. He has decided to stand as an independent MP candidate in his local constituency of Hastings and Rye. And he told The Canary that “anti-corruption” will be the focus of his campaign:

Nothing is done about corruption in the UK. I have been exposing the most serious infiltration of HSBC into every strata of UK life, from the BBC, secret services and every government department. The cover-ups by captured regulators, the [alleged] election fraud of incumbent MP Amber Rudd, the censorship of mainstream media. Nothing is done, and Labour are conspicuous by their failure to act. There needs to be a voice in parliament for whistleblowers and someone to hold corrupt MPs to account.

Wilson says he is “left-wing and a socialist”. And mental health awareness will also feature in his campaign. As someone who has spoken openly about depression, he is the perfect candidate to campaign on this issue. But Tory election fraud is going to be central, too.

Tory election fraud

As it stands, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is considering charges against 30 Conservatives, including numerous MPs. They relate to alleged expenses, like the infamous Tory ‘Battle Bus’, which some say Conservative MPs should have declared as local spending, but which the Tories actually declared as national expenditure. This means that many MPs may have breached electoral law over spending guidelines.

Wilson says:

I believe both the last election and the EU referendum were run on fraud. And if Channel 4 and The Sunday Times hadn’t spiked articles before the last election about David Cameron’s corruption, he would never have been re-elected.

Splitting the vote?

There may well be criticisms from many about Wilson splitting the Labour vote in Hastings and Rye. At the 2015 general election, Rudd had a not-unbeatable majority of 4,796. So it could mean the seat becomes a Labour target. But this doesn’t concern Wilson. He insists:

I keep repeating the same thing. Labour is not squeaky clean – that is probably why it doesn’t tackle corruption. It has been making a lot of noise recently about tax evasion, but so have the Tories. I’ve had more support from Tory (Jesse Norman) and SNP (George Kerevan) MPs. Nothing whatsoever from Labour, despite meetings.
Enough is enough

Wilson recognises the need to “get the Tories out”. He says he will support Labour to win the election and “would urge people in other constituencies to vote for them”. But in Hastings and Rye, he plans to tackle Tory election fraud, and corruption more broadly. And when asked why people should vote Nicholas Wilson, he simply says:

Enough is enough. There needs to be new influence in parliament.
And enough is indeed enough, especially when it comes to alleged Tory election fraud.”

https://www.thecanary.co/2017/04/24/the-home-secretary-just-got-some-really-bad-news-about-tory-election-fraud/

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What can US and French elections tell us about East Devon?

The voters of the US and France have each sent out strong signals that people are not just tired of party politics but that they will seek actively to stop them by favouring candidates who promise that they will make independent decisions rather than follow party dogma.

Trump is decried by his own party – the Republicans – for not toeing their party line. The Democrats really wanted Bernie Sanders to stand – a man whose policies were a far cry from those of Clinton – but party grandees went for what they saw as the “safe” party choice. The choice that lost them the election.

The old “left” and “right” no longer speak to an electorate that sees that, in fact, they are the same side of the coin, both standing for the status quo.

The constituency electorate wants people who can think for themselves and do what they need locally, even more than nationally and internationally. They want people who will fight THEIR corner and only their corner. That means sometimes choosing “right wing” decisions and sometimes “left wing” because that is how they themselves see the world.

They see that parties are too hidebound and stuck in their ways, too rigid to think on their feet and support the correct course rather than the party course.

This will spread to the UK – maybe not in time for this election – but certainly for the next one.

In the Netherlands many parties have to work together in coalition. This means that each of them gets something but no party gets everything – horse trading goes on to ensure that each group in the coalition is prepared to work with others. They still choose a Prime Minister, Foreign Minister, etc but based on a wide variety of choices available, not just a party leader. Just one way that a wider political spectrum works.

Interesting times.

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“Why a snap election? Ask the 30 tories facing criminal charges…” says Daily Mail article

If the Daily Mail says this, then it seems things are much worse than they appear with the election fraud scandL

“This is a flap election, not a snap election. It has been called to get the Government out of what might be serious legal trouble. I am amazed this has not attracted more attention.

It is this simple. The Crown Prosecution Service is now looking at the cases of 30, yes 30, Tory MPs and agents, who have been investigated for breaking spending rules at the last General Election.

The allegations have been probed by 14 police forces after claims that the Conservatives’ ‘battlebus’ campaign broke legal spending limits in several key marginal seats.

The Tories have already been in deep trouble over their new election techniques, where busloads of outsiders flood into winnable seats to round up crucial extra votes. This was a way of making up for the Tory party’s severe loss of active members, who used to do this donkey work. But it is sailing very close to the legal wind.

Last month they were hit by the Electoral Commission with a record £70,000 fine – the maximum – for failing to declare their spending. The forces involved are Avon & Somerset, Cumbria, Derbyshire, Devon & Cornwall, Gloucestershire, Greater Manchester, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire, Staffordshire, West Mercia, West Midlands, West Yorkshire and the Met.

These cases are likely to result in some charges (I have no idea how many) in the next few weeks, probably just before polling day. Trials, assuming these go ahead, will be much later in the year and might not reach verdicts until well into 2018.

If there had been no election, any convictions could have meant MPs found guilty being forced to stand down, and elections being rerun. A General Election makes this much less of a threat, especially if Mrs May manages to increase her meagre majority.

This menace has been worrying the Cabinet for some months, as it has become clear it will not go away. And it is a far better explanation of the Prime Minister’s change of heart than her rather weird and incoherent speech in Downing Street. I happen to think she is a naturally truthful person and meant what she said when she previously declared several times that she was going to stay on till 2020.

But the expenses allegations, which started as a cloud on the horizon no bigger than a man’s hand, have grown and grown. I suspect her advisers have been telling her she cannot risk them coming into the open late in a Parliament when, perhaps, the economy is not doing well, or EU negotiations are going badly or Labour has a new leader.

As a result of this semi-secret crisis, the Tory campaign this time will have to be a good deal more cautious about such things, which may weaken it, especially if the campaign goes wrong – and this is not impossible.

Even now the affair could be highly damaging – but early in a new Parliament, with a secure majority, the Government should be able to weather it far better than if Mrs May had soldiered on. But all elections are risks. It is amazing how often governments lose control of them.

Politics in this country are a good deal less solid and stable than they seem.”

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-4436518/PETER-HITCHENS-snap-election.html

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Many young people registering to vote – more needed!

“Almost 350,000 people have registered to vote since Tuesday’s surprise announcement that there would be a general election on 8 June.

The highest number of registrations was on the day itself, with 147,000 people registering online after Theresa May fired the election starting gun, along with 3,364 paper forms being submitted.

This was the biggest total recorded for a single day since the EU referendum campaign in 2016.

And the number of young people registering is the highest of any age group.” …
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-39678859

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Standing for DCC and thinking of standing for Parliament? Hold on!

DCC confirms that anyone intending to stand for Parliament at the coming election must NOT declare their candidature until after county council elections on 4 May 2017.

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Register to vote by 22 May in General Election

Anyone planning to vote in June’s general election who isn’t yet on the electoral roll has only until Monday 22 May to register.

You’re eligible to vote in the 8 June general election if:

You’re a British, Irish or Commonwealth citizen aged 18 or over who is currently living in the UK.

You’re a British citizen aged 18 or over who’s been registered to vote in the UK in the past 15 years.

However, simply being eligible to vote doesn’t mean you’re actualnly able to you have to register by 11.59pm on Monday 22 May, otherwise you won’t be able to vote in the general election.

In addition to giving you a vote, registering boosts your chances of getting credit, as lenders can use the electoral roll to check out potential borrowers. See our Credit Scores guide for more on this and other tips on how to boost your score.

How to register

Check if you’re registered to vote by getting in touch with your local authority. Enter your postcode on Gov.uk to find your local electoral registration office and contact it directly.

If you were registered for last June’s Brexit referendum or are for the local elections on Thursday 4 May this year, AND you still live at the same address, you should already be registered to vote but if not, you need to register by Monday 22 May.

If you’re not on the electoral roll, visit Gov.uk to register to vote in England, Scotland and Wales. Registering online takes about five minutes.

Or you can download a form to register by post, which you’ll need to send to your local electoral registration office, but make sure it arrives by 22 May.

To register in Northern Ireland, visit the Your Vote Matters website to download the form and return it to your local area electoral office.

Postal and proxy votes

If you’re already registered to vote in person and you wish to switch to a postal vote or a proxy vote (where a voter nominates a trusted person to cast a vote on their behalf) in time for the general election, there are separate deadlines for changing your voting method.

To switch to a postal vote, you’ll need to register by 5pm on Tuesday 23 May. If you’re opting for a proxy vote, the deadline is 5pm on Wednesday 31 May.

If you’re in England, Scotland or Wales, you can change your voting preferences by downloading a postal vote or proxy vote form from Gov.uk. To do this in Northern Ireland, different forms are required.

https://t.co/ynrYmAVfAb

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Everything you need to know about voting

Searchable by postcode. If you find any mistakes in the EDDC information, let Owl know: eastdevonwatch@gmail.com

Includes:

FAQS
How do I change my details on the electoral register?
Do I need to re-register to vote if I move home?
How do I check the electoral register?
Can I search the electoral register online?

https://www.yourvotematters.co.uk/

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Find your polling station – maybe

Is Mark Williams ready for this?

“Very welcome news from the latest Electoral Commission bulletin:

“In Bulletin 173 we advised that we would again be supporting Democracy Club in their work to provide an online polling station finder and encouraged all councils to provide the necessary polling station data to Democracy Club. This work will allow voters to find their polling station online by entering their postcode. We will soon be adding polling station information to our Your Vote Matters website so that visitors to the site can find out where their polling station is.

We will also be making available a list of candidates standing for election on our Your Vote Matters website. This information is being compiled from the statements of persons nominated published on local authority websites. To find this information, users will need to enter their postcode on the main landing page of the site, and candidates standing for elections in their area will then be listed.”

Having one central website where you can enter your address and find out where your polling station is might sound like a simple, obvious step. Which it is – but also one that was elusive for many years because polling station data is split between all the different local councils, and moreover not stored in systems designed to make it simple to export and share such data for combined use.

http://www.markpack.org.uk/149349/online-polling-station-finder-2017-general-election/

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General election purdah begins today

The Local Government Association (LGA) has clarified its position on the commencement of Purdah ahead of the general election in June, following the publication of its guidance

http://www.local.gov.uk/purdah-short-guide-publicity-during-pre-election-period

The LGA has confirmed that Purdah begins tomorrow for the civil service, but does not come into effect for all of local government. Instead, it said, that those authorities that do not have local elections this year (mostly councils in London) should commence a period of “heightened sensitivity” as set out in the local government code governing publicity.

The LGA advised that extra care should be taken when undertaking anything which could directly, or be perceived to, affect support for a party or candidate and urge officers to seek advice from their MO at all times. The LGA also stressed that pre-election activity can also include such things as use of council facilities, resources, codes of conduct, developing new or controversial policies and holding events (including some meetings) featuring candidates.

The full recommended code of practice can be downloaded at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/recommended-code-of-practice-for-local-authority-publicity

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“Public services pressures the next government can’t ignore”

Emily Andrews, Institute of Government writes:

“As the general election campaign gets going, politicians must not duck the issue of serious pressures in the public sector

It is no secret that the Conservative government has struggled to implement the promises of their last manifesto, particularly those around spending controls. As our Performance Tracker report shows, the short-term belt-tightening measures which produced efficiencies in the early part of the last Parliament – staff cuts and wage control – are no longer working.

In the last six months, the government has twice been forced into emergency action to stabilise services at or on the brink of failure: with emergency cash injections announced for 2,500 new prison officers at the end of 2016, and £2bn for social care at the March Budget.

The biggest pressures

The data makes it clear where the biggest pressures facing the incoming government lie.

The last time the UK went to the polls (in a general election at least) 91% of people were seen at A&E within four hours. This is shy of the government’s 95% target, which had not been hit since the end of 2012. Since then, despite record overspends and a cash injection at the last spending review, the number of people being seen within this targeted time has continued to fall, down to 81% at the end of last year.

Despite growing numbers of older people, and working-age adults with long-term conditions, adult social care received a 6% spending cut between 2009/10 and 2015/16. This includes a funding boost from the Better Care Fund last year.

Yet delayed transfers of care – where people who are deemed medically fit for discharge remain in a hospital bed – have continued to rise. The number of days delayed due to issues in social care has risen 51% since August 2015.

The extra £2bn provided to the adult social care in the March budget may help tackle this immediate problem, but the prime minister herself has admitted that the government does not currently have a long-term solution to put the struggling sector on a sustainable footing.

Schools have continued to be comparatively well-funded but deeper problems are starting to appear. Last year, the government’s target for teachers entering training was missed by 15%. Meanwhile the number of teachers leaving state secondary schools has outstripped the number entering them, at a time when the number of secondary school pupils is set to rise. Schools will have to tackle these problems at the same time as a 6.5% reduction in per pupil funding (up to 2019/20).

It is no secret that the Conservative government has struggled to implement the promises of their last manifesto, particularly those around spending controls. As our Performance Tracker report shows, the short-term belt-tightening measures which produced efficiencies in the early part of the last Parliament – staff cuts and wage control – are no longer working.

In the last six months, the government has twice been forced into emergency action to stabilise services at or on the brink of failure: with emergency cash injections announced for 2,500 new prison officers at the end of 2016, and £2bn for social care at the March Budget.

Waiting times IfG

Despite growing numbers of older people, and working-age adults with long-term conditions, adult social care received a 6% spending cut between 2009/10 and 2015/16. This includes a funding boost from the Better Care Fund last year.

Yet delayed transfers of care – where people who are deemed medically fit for discharge remain in a hospital bed – have continued to rise. The number of days delayed due to issues in social care has risen 51% since August 2015.

The extra £2bn provided to the adult social care in the March budget may help tackle this immediate problem, but the prime minister herself has admitted that the government does not currently have a long-term solution to put the struggling sector on a sustainable footing.

Facing up to the issues

So what are the options facing the current crop of ministers and aspiring ministers, as their election campaigns kick into gear?

Vague promises of efficiency and reform will not cut it this time round after another two years of intensifying pressures in public services.

Vote-winning cash injection promises – softening the blow of the new schools’ funding formula perhaps – may look appealing. But failure to match the cash to genuine solutions could end up wasting money which the next government, whatever their colour, will not be able to spare. And we know the ‘crisis, cash, repeat’ pattern of the last two years is unsustainable – financially and politically.

To square these circles – of demographic ageing, issues with the schools workforce, and a hefty Brexit implementation bill – the next government will have to make difficult decisions.

All politicians owe it to the electorate to make it clear what those are. It will be pretty obvious whether this is happening. It will mean, for example, putting some specifics behind promises of ‘long-term strategy’ for social care – for example, do the parties intend to implement the recommendations of the Dilnot Commission, and if so how do they intend to pay for it?

Even better, parties should commit to submitting their spending plans to independent scrutiny through an ‘OBR for public spending’, to assess their realism. In a ‘post-truth’ age, it is vital that the public can trust that politicians’ claims about what they can achieve are reliable.

Politicians should use this election to gain a political mandate for specific, challenging reforms to tackle these pressures – or risk failing services and intensifying public mistrust.

http://www.publicfinance.co.uk/opinion/2017/04/public-services-pressures-next-government-cant-ignore

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General election timetable

http://www.markpack.org.uk/149348/2017-general-election-timetable/

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Claire Wright asks for “army of helpers” for bid to challenge sitting MP

An army of helpers are required if I am to run as a parliamentary candidate again!

I am seriously considering putting my hat in the ring as an Independent candidate in the 8 June General Election.

I have been for many years, deeply concerned at this government’s attitude towards public services, especially the NHS, social care and education, all of which are underfunded and hugely struggling, especially in Devon.

Devon County Council has seen over half its budgets disappear due to austerity measures. Many services have been cut back, or lost as a result.

I am also concerned about the effect of Brexit on the vast amount of land and species currently highly protected under EU legislation. This is at risk of not being properly protected as we leave the EU.

In Devon alone, there are 122 sites across 115,000 hectares, including at Woodbury and Aylesbeare Commons.

The transfer of this EU legislation to UK law needs carefully monitoring.

Since Tuesday morning I have received hundreds of messages of support and offers of help if I decide to run again, which has been touching and inspiring. This has forced me to consider my options carefully.

To run a successful campaign at such short notice, however, I need an army of leafleters and helpers.

If enough people come forward to offer practical help, I will be able to run.

If you are able to help, please contact me at

claire@claire-wright.org

stating relevant skills you have and how you can help.

Thank you.

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NHS a major concern for voters

“Health is always discussed on the doorsteps in general election campaigns.
Labour has long seen the NHS as its defining electoral issue.

The Conservatives have tried hard to demonstrate their commitment with pledges in recent years of above-inflation investment.

But how much difference will it make this time in a campaign that is sure to be dominated by Brexit?

Polling suggests the state of the NHS is high on people’s list of concerns.
An Ipsos/Mori survey in January in association with the Economist showed that 49% of respondents considered it to be one of the biggest issues facing Britain, up nine percentage points since December and the highest level recorded since April 2003.

This was slightly ahead of the proportion (41%) seeing the EU and Brexit as a major issue. Immigration was next on the list, though lower than in December.

The same survey just before the general election in May 2015 had the economy, the NHS and immigration bunched quite closely together as issues of the highest public concern.

The latest snapshot has the NHS pulling ahead of both. But the key question is whether what people tell the pollsters are key issues translates into voting intentions.

The King’s Fund think tank recently analysed the British Social Attitudes survey taken across England, Scotland and Wales and found that public satisfaction with the NHS was high at 63%, little changed from 2015.
It is worth pointing out, though, that this polling was carried out in the summer and early autumn of 2016 before the latest bout of winter pressures.
The general election health debate will be about England as governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland run their health services and they have no elections this time.

Labour made health a central plank of its 2015 election campaign. Andy Burnham, then the party’s health spokesman, spoke out forcefully about the pressures on hospitals over the preceding winter. He also accused the Conservatives of encouraging privatisation of the NHS, which they in turn denied.

But this failed to cut through, as the Tories achieved a majority.
This time Labour is stressing that health will again be central to its campaigning effort.”

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-39640624

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Can we afford to starve education of funding?

“BRITAIN is facing a chronic skills shortage as the country’s teens languish among the worst in the western World at reading and maths.

A devastating new report last night claimed England and Northern Ireland together are rated in the bottom four “of the international class” for literacy and numeracy.

And they’re the UK’s 16 to 24 year-olds are dead last in an OECD classification of 19 countries for computer problem-solving skills.

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) slammed ministers past and present for “two decades” of failing the nation’s youth.

And it urged the Government to use a further £2 billion from the Apprenticeship Levy to pay for more skills training.

Lizzie Crowley, CIPD skills adviser, said the country was “sleepwalking into a low-value, low-skills economy”.

She said: “Our report should serve as a real wake-up call for the Government to break with the past past two decades of failed skills policy and set the UK on a new course that delivers the right results for individuals, organisations and the economy as a whole.”

She added: “We can either take the high road as a nation or we can keep doing what we’ve always done and get the same mediocre results.”

The CIPD said it was the first time the OECD had arranged the statistics in this way.”

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/3359236/britains-teens-among-the-worst-in-the-world-at-reading-maths-and-even-computer-skills/

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Young people: time to have your voting voice heard

Too late to register to vote in county elections on 4 May but NOT too late to vote in the general election on 8 June:

A full FAQ guide:

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/general-election-2017-uk-how-do-i-register-when-is-it-am-i-registered-renting-address-constituency-a7688851.html

Many young people claimed they did not vote for or against Brexit because “it would make no difference”. Well, it would have done, so don’t make that mistake this time. Your votes could be decisive.

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Swire ( slightly) earns his £2,000/month extra for a 57 second You Tube video on his views on Palestine

You would be correct in thinking Palestine is not a Sidmouth suburb nor is it an East Devon village.

And do remember he accompanies British arms manufacturers in their visits around the Middle East.

That’s when he’s not asking questions in Parliament on resuming flights to Egypt’s Sharm el Sheikh diving resort, democracy in balmy Mauritius and far away Venezuela and – just as important – motor cycle noise.

Swire: selling the world to East Devon!