Anniversary of the murder of Bulic Forsyth

 

Today is the 32nd anniversary of the murder of Bulic Forsythe a Lambeth social worker who was murdered days after he spoke about his suspicions that children were being assaulted by an organised gang at a children’s home that is said to have been visited by the Labour politician. A policeman who shared suspicions about a Labour politician was pulled from the case, which remains unsolved. More here 

Tories handed nearly £300 million of PPE contracts to businesses associated with a religious cult, the PBCC

15/08/2020



John Penrose MP

House of Commons

London SW1A 0AA




Dear John


On this page of Byline Times https://tinyurl.com/y6xy7cou is an account of how 11 companies have been awarded contracts for PPE totalling nearly £300 million. Here is a list of the companies: Unispace Global Ltd., Tower Supplies, Techniclean, Blueleaf Ltd., Denka UK Ltd., Accora, ToffeIn Ltd., Orcagel, Oska Care Ltd., Clandeboye Agencies Ltd., and Medco.



The striking thing about these companies is that all of them are more or less closely linked with a small religious group commonly known as Exclusive Brethren, now calling themselves the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church (PBCC). This is a small fissiparous sect numbering some 22,000 members in the UK.



The PBCC can fairly be characterised as a cult. They believe themselves to be the only true body of Christians on earth, and separate themselves strictly from association with the “world” which they believe to be dominated by the Devil. Members are strictly controlled in their thinking and behaviour, and any behaviour that deviates from their rules is punished by total isolation for a period. If this does not bring about repentance the member will be anathematised. This in effect means losing all their familial, social, and often economic connections, which as you can imagine can lead to catastrophic consequences, including suicide.



Their separation from the world means that voting is forbidden, but they do allow themselves to support and lobby conservative political parties in Australia, the USA and here in the UK. They are expert lobbyists, and have put extraordinary pressure on the Charities Commission with the result that they have been granted charitable status worth some £11 million a year to them.



The fact that companies linked with this cult have been awarded, without a competitive tendering process, such a large number of contracts, demands investigation. How long had each company been in existence before the contract was signed with Government? What was the net value of each company before the contract? What expertise did each company have? Who decided to award the contracts? What was the process? Have they delivered on the contract? Why were so many contracts awarded to so many companies connected to this cult?



I understand that normal tendering processes have been suspended because of the pandemic, but it does look as if due diligence and impartiality has not been adhered to in this matter.



I would be very grateful if you would give some careful thought to this unusual set of circumstances and let me know what action you will be taking to investigate and rectify them.



With kind regards

Richard

Taming the UK media

In addition to constitutional and Parliamentary reform to eliminate the corruption, great and small, that infests our Parliament, we also need to reform the way the media is set up in our backwards country.

Yesterday I stumbled across the Media Reform Coalition, a group of 20 heavyweight NGOs. 

They have a worked out, reasonable Manifesto. Here is the summary:

Five main headings:

1. Controls on media ownership
2. Independent,  trusted and effective regulation of the press
3. Well funded, independent public service media (ie the BBC)
4. Protection for communication rights (against Govt and private snooping)
5. Action on lobbying and transparency 

The manifesto develops these points, so I do not need to.

So there we have it. All we have to do is turn Parliament upside down and shake all the money out of its pockets, and tame the corporate media. Then we will be in a position to bring about changes that will allow our children and grandchildren to live decent lives.

Sorted.

Crisis, Danger and Opportunity in a crumbling Palace of Westminster

You may have noticed that Parliament opened last week. Fairy tale carriages. Loads of gold plate. Theatrical flourishes.

Woman in million pound hat reads speech promising that the poor will have their fecking noses rubbed more firmly in the dirt as Dodgy Dave and his cronies as they continue to promulgate the lie that somehow spending on the NHS, education and the police caused sub-prime mortgages to implode in the USA and banks to crash around the world.

All of these charades overlying the festering boil that is the obscene cover-up of child sexual abuse by MPs, civil servants, "Lords" and others who constitute our Establishment of the  "great and the good".

Meanwhile Caroline Lucas has written book Honourable Friends - Parliament and the fight for change which details the absurdities and downright undemocratic damnedness of House of Commons procedures.

And the whole process is shot through with the everyday corruption of lobbying, directorships and political donations.

So Westminster is crying out for radical reform, a total clear out of the gowns and the clowns of this humiliating, outdated charade and mountebankery, everything from Black Penis Rod to the idiotic First Past the Post voting system.

"It'll never happen", I hear you cry. Oh no?

Well, factor this in:
It's not just the ancient procedures that are past their sell-by.
It's not just the Big Men who are bent, Big Ben is bent too.
It's not just the voting system, the plumbing and electrics are out of date too.
It's not just that some Lords have dementia, the very walls are cracked too.
It's not just that the place is infested with corporate lobbyists, it's got mice too.

The whole 170-year old Palace of Westminster, the physical structure is falling down.
It needs to close for 5 years and have £3bn of work carried out.

Which is great.

It means that Parliament has to relocate to another place or another city, preferably in a location that is not vulnerable to flooding, like Oxford or Birmingham. Parliament  needs a new building, with modern offices, a semicircular chamber and electronic voting. A nice modern block of flats for the MPs and elected members of the Second Chamber. Matched with a totally renewed British Constitution.

And the Palace of Westminster? That can become a museum, a place for theatre, where tourists can watch the State Opening of Parliament twice a day, or watch drunk and demented Lords a-leaping at Christmas, Easter and other Holy Days, together with whatever else will draw the paying crowds. If the people want circuses, let them have a circus.  But let democracy have our daily bread in another place.

14 Reforms needed to stop the corruption that infects Westminster

On Tuesday 28th April North Somerset Green Party is holding an election rally in Weston super Mare Town Hall about corruption in Westminster. It is based loosely on this post.

This is the conclusion I will put forward: 14 acts of reform. 
We have to reform Parliament, and we have to start somewhere. This is where we start.

If you're in Weston , you can just walk in. But be early, because the hall may fill up.

Here is a list of the reforms we need:



Money must serve people, not vice versa


Proportional Representation


Balanced media – no one person to own >20% of UK media


Lobbying and Transparency Act, specifying who is lobbying whom, with how much


Ban MPs from holding Directorships and major shareholdings











Bring Janner to Court for Trial of Facts


Empower detectives to ask “Who gave the order?”


Educate children about body safety


Treat survivors and also paedophiles





Give MPs an average, decent living allowance


Power of Recall if MPs err


Lobbying and Transparency Act, specifying who is lobbying whom, with how much


Ban MP directorships and major shareholdings


Cap donations to parties, and pay parties from taxes, on a per vote basis

Letter in the Guardian about Corruption

Wahey! Got a letter in the Grauniad this morning:

It's here if you don't believe me. And it goes like this:

Glad to see Timothy Garton Ash touching on the question of corruption in parliament (It’s not just parliament’s buildings that require extensive renovation, 28 March). The full charge sheet is as follows: cash for questions, cash for access (twice), cash for honours, cash for influence (twice), Jowellgate, Peter Watt, Michael Brown, Bernie Ecclestone, Werrittygate, Hunt, Rifkind and Straw. One scandal every 18 months or so. Then we have the institutionalised cultural corruption of corporate lobbying, directorships, revolving doors and political donations. And last but not least, the alleged 14 cases where the Metropolitan police terminated investigations that were implicating MPs and establishment figures and the 46 instances where similar cover-ups took place. All these are in addition to the absurd spectacle of PMQs and the House of Lords, and spadocracy and MPs’ expenses, which were mentioned by Timothy Garton Ash.

In the face of this elephantine boil on the fat buttock of Westminster, we are being treated to prolonged national debate over the layout of Miliband’s second kitchen. No wonder so many people are turning away from electoral politics.
Dr Richard Lawson
Green PPC for Weston-super-Mare

---

WESTMINSTER FAIR

(To the tune of Widecombe Fair)

Broadcaster, broadcaster get me on the air

All along, down along, all about me

For I want to go to the Westminster Fair

Cash for questions, cash for honours, cash for access,

Cash for influence, Bernie Ecclestone,

Werrity, Rifkind and Straw,

And Werrity, Rifkind and Straw.

Elector, elector just you vote for me

All along, down along, all about me

And I will make use of your democracy

Cash for questions, cash for honours, cash for access,

Cash for influence, Bernie Ecclestone,

Werrity, Rifkind and Straw,

And Werrity, Rifkind and Straw.

Democracy just about took sick and died

All along, down along, all about me

And all the electors they sat down and cried

Cash for questions, cash for honours, cash for access,

Cash for influence, Bernie Ecclestone,

Werrity, Rifkind and Straw,

And Werrity, Rifkind and Straw.

And when they had finished they all raised their voice

All along, down along, all about me

And said to the Gument you leave us no choice

Wi' cash for questions, cash for honours, cash for access,

Cash for influence, Bernie Ecclestone,

Werrity, Rifkind and Straw,

And Werrity, Rifkind and Straw.

Your greed and corruption is there to be seen

All along, down along, all about me

We'd rather have someone who's honest and clean

Cash for questions, cash for honours, cash for access,

Cash for influence, Bernie Ecclestone,

Werrity, Rifkind and Straw,

And Werrity, Rifkind and Straw.

Dave Hartnett's HMRC attacks righteous whistleblower

There's a story in today's Guardian about a tax inspector who seems to have been punished for blowing the whistle on Dave Hartnett, a top civil servant at HMRC - the one who let Vodafone off up to £6 billion.

I find that that these stories are complex and difficult to get your head around, so I am going to give the essence here, and you can go to the Guardian if you want the gory detail.

1. Hartnett let Goldman Sachs get away with £10 million in interest on tax. 
2. Osita Mba, a solicitor in HMRC thought this was wrong, and informed two Parliamentary committees. 
3. The day after Mba acted, his address and tel no were passed to HMRC criminal investigation unit, possibly in contravention of the Data Protection Act.

This stinks.

Osita Mba should be honoured for acting in the interests of the taxpayer, not hounded and intimidated.

Hartnett is the one who should be investigated.
Oh. Hang on - he is. A judge is looking at his big corporate tax relief decisions.

Keep an eye on the story.

Why is the Coulson affair not a story for the UK mainstream media?

Image thanks to NaturalNews

The big question today is "Why the news blackout on the Coulsongate/MetGate/HackGate affair?"

The fact is that one News of the World (NoTW)  reporter (Goodman)  and one private investigator (Mulcaire) were sent to prison for hacking into Royal phone accounts.  The allegation is that the Metropolitan Police drew back from investigating the full scale of the NoTW phone hacks. Fresh witnesses to the widespread nature of the hacks, and of Coulson's knowledge, have been found by the New York Times (NYT). But in the UK, only the Guardian, Spectator and today the Independent and FT are carrying it as a story, in sharp contrast to the Twittersphere, where Andy Coulson was among the top 10 trending topics for most of yesterday

There are several reasons and possible reasons for this worrying disparity between what social media and mainstream media find interesting.

1. The competing (non-)story of William Hague's sleeping arrangements. It is of note that the vanishingly far-right climate change denialist blogger Guido Fawkes was the one who slopped out this story, and at the same time is trying to minimise the significance of the MetGate story. So much for libertarian integrity. One popular tweet asks whether Coulson somehow promoted the Hague story to divert attention from his own story - now backed by this Independent report.
2. The fact that Andy Coulson is Dave's Communications Manager (=spin doctor), which means that the wise monkeys of the Tory press are not eager to see, hear or speak about the story if they can help it.
3. Britain's draconian libel laws. This may explain why the NYT has been the one to do the investigation and reportage, being safely out of the influence of Messers Farter Cuck and their unpeasant  homophones. Sign the petition for libel law reform here.
4. The fact that there are four private legal actions being taken by individuals who believe that their phones were hacked will be used as a hedge behind which to shelter by agencies such as the Independent Police Complaints Commission.
5. The fact that police officers examining the lists held by Mulcaire found names of police officers (e.g. Ian Blair and Brian Paddick) is quoted. You would think that this would intensify their efforts, rather than cause them to give up.
6. The fact that the NoTW belongs to Rupert Mordorch, the All-Seeing Eye of international opinion. It has been alleged that the Dark Lord has influence with Scotland Yard. This is even more worrying, given that his present project is to destroy the BBC, which, for all its failings (not least in his present affair), does at least belong to the people, not to News International.
7. Last, but not least, the possibility that phone hacking is not a crime unique to the NoTW. In the NYT article it is alleged that the illegal practice is widespread in British tabloid journalism. Added to the fact that there is a code of conduct between news editors: "You don't attack me, I won't attack you".That's why there are so few scandals about the profession of journalism, as compared to the other professions. Here's another journalist: "When I worked at @dailyexpressuk phone hacking was widespread. No wonder the Coulson story isn't getting much coverage."  @simonhinde

Seven possible reasons for a news blackout. Seven reasons of varying shades of dark ugliness.

Despite the craven silence of most British media outlets, the truth will out, because of the power of the interweb. Coulson will resign, sooner or later, and the longer he stays on, the bigger will be the damage to the Cameron. An inquiry of some kind will be set up, either a Huttonesque whitewash, or a serious affair that will uncover an unsavoury nexus of quasi-corruption and foetid influence between Mordorch, police and media in the fair sovereign realm of Britannia.

In the end we may get reform of the media, obliging them to adhere to the law, and to standards of truth. We live in hope.
__________________________________________________________________________
Updates:
Helpful timeline summary from NYT here.

The Electoral Commission Fails to Inspire Public Confidence

The Electoral Commission (EC) has given the thumbs up to "Lord" non-dom Ashcroft's company, Bearwood Corporate Services*. It was a "permissible donor".

Bearwood Corporate Finance, advises on acquisitions and mergers, minimum fee £10,000.

I will just whizz us through the result of 18 months of Electoral Commission (EC) deliberations.

BCS, ...is not a regulated entity,
Which means what exactly? EC does not develop this thought.
Lord Ashcroft ...provided some information on a voluntary basis, although in response to requests for documents regarding BCS and its parent companies (including ownership, control, beneficial interests or provision of funding to those companies), his solicitors indicated that Lord Ashcroft did not have in his possession any such documents, and that his policy was to destroy documents unless retaining them was a requirement for an auditing, tax, or regulatory reason and any documents not within this category were not retained once their purpose had been served.Great policy. Free tip on How to Succeed in Business. Saves on space. Who wants to keep stuff about clients, outcomes &c?
The first reported donation by BCS to the party was on 28 February 2003. Between then and 31 December 2009 the party reported £5,137,785 of donations from BCS.
The EC gives no data on when BCS was founded, what its turnover was, what its profits were. Nada.
IN the absence of any data, let us assume that a company might choose to donate 5% of its total profits to the excellent Conservative Party. I make that an annual profit of £14,285,700. Nice work if you can get it. Inland Revenue please take note.

On the other hand, the EC says
There is no definition in PPERA** of “carrying on business”. However, in other areas of the law, the term has been interpreted broadly. It is not necessary for a company to generate profit. A company need not be actively trading, provided that the company continues to engage in business transactions, such as employing staff or paying for business facilities. Additionally, even if a company has not yet traded, provided that it is preparing to do so, it is likely to be within the scope of “carrying on business”.

• throughout the period under consideration BCS conducted a management consultancy business

• up to July 2006 it also conducted a merger broking business 

(Still is, according to its website).

• from December 2007 it carried on business as a holding company

BCS’ accounts indicate that the funds used for BCS’ donations were not generated wholly from BCS’ own trading activities.
(Money shifted to and fro from Besleaze)

Anyway,
The Commission concluded that BCS met the permissibility requirements for making political donations.
So that's all right then.

I'm bored already. This is like reading a New Age book entitled "Faeries are Real, Faeries are Good, Come Meet the Faeries in My Wood".

Read it yourself, if you think it is worth your time, it's only 7 pages long, with big type.

The point that I take home is that the Electoral Commission should be scrapped as part of the Governments' Debt Reduction Programme, and political party funding should be laid wide open to the free market. Anyone who wants to buy a politician, go right ahead. Be our guest.
Welcome to Britain, the land of unregulated political donations.

Remember this is the same EC that ruled that the Fraudster Michael Brown's company was OK to give a donation to the LibDems on the very day it was set up.

The aim of the Electoral Commission  is "integrity and public confidence in the democratic process".

My humble opinion is that they have utterly and completely failed. I could go on, but it would just be a rant, so I will close with just one final word: 


Bolleaux!!


*Funny name. Whatever would a bear be doing in a wood? I would have thought CathPope would be a more upmarket moniker. Never mind.
** The Law that covers this matter.

Bee Blog Day: Bayer Buys BBKA

I have just learned from the estimable Ruscombe Green that today is Bee Blogging Day.
Here's my 2b worth:

Every skuleboy kno that we would all die of starvation if no bees.
Every skuleboy kno that CCD is killing bees seriously.


Bayer's neo-nicotinoids are implicated in Colony Collapse Disorder CCD.
Bayer supports the British Bee Keepers Association.
Therefore the BBKA has no position on whether neo-nicotinoids are implicated in CCD.


If I'm wrong, Bayer can Carter-Ruck me.

PS
My local Tory MP, John Penrose, is a beekeeper and he just looked shifty when I raised the neo-nicotinoid question when I met him at Winscombe fete. He is a decent enough guy as a person, but naive in terms of corporate influence, no understanding of the realities of corporate influence.

I am standing against him in the General Election.

Cameron admits Ashcroft does not pay full British Tax on New Poster

 

Thanks to Andy Barefoot for the poster tool.

Further to my earlier posting, I thought it best to force the issue of the Conservative imbroglio over Ashcroft's non-dom status by producing the above poster. Due to the immense generosity of a millionaire donor domiciled in a tax haven, we will be able to flood the country with bill boards promoting the facts of the matter. (Not). The Tories will be obliged to sue us if they believe they have a case, but their attempt is doomed to failure because the Mabinogogiblog (see blog heading) has already engaged Messers Carter-Ruck to fight our corner. If they do not sue us, they will be either admitting guilt, or exercising de minimis non curantur lex. To avoid the latter, please tweet a link to this page.

[update 14 Feb: BBC report:

Shadow Chancellor George Osborne has insisted Lord Ashcroft's tax affairs are a matter for him and accused the media of bias in asking about them. He said similar questions should be asked about Labour donor Lord Paul, thought to be non-domiciled for tax.
No they should't George, because that would be a matter for them. Wouldn't it? In your estimation?

The report continues:
Tory chairman Eric Pickles told the BBC he did not know the peer's tax status but, if he did, he would say. 
So Eric is breaking omerta. Watch out for horse heads in the bed, Eric

In a forthcoming BBC Radio 4 documentary on party funding, Mr Pickles says he is "alarmed" by comments from the Information Commissioner, who accused the Conservatives of "obfuscatory" answers on Ashcroft. 
Obfuscatory is not wrong.
But he stops short of urging his deputy to be more open, telling presenter Ann McElvoy: "That's a matter for him to consider. Lord Aschcroft is entitled to his privacy." 
Eric is back singing from the Central Office hymn sheet. But it's a crap hymn, because it is not for him and the IR, there is a little matter of Electoral Law:

[Ashcroft's] donations [to the Tory Party] are the subject of an Electoral Commission investigation over claims the company through which they were made - Bearwood Corporate Services - is in breach of electoral law for not "carrying on business" in Britain.


As the poster says, it is perfectly clear to any non-politician that Ashcroft is not a British taxpayer, so the donations are illegitimate and the Tries must pay them back, as should Labour pay back the donations of Paul and Mittal, and the LibDems have a moral obligation to pay back their illegit donations from fraudster Michael Brown and arms dealer Sudir Choudhrie.

But with all 3 big parties up to their necks in nastiness, they are hoping to delay the day of reckoning until the election is in the bag for them.

There is a case for the Greens, Plaid Cymru, SNP, and any non-offensive other small parties to go twist arms at the Electoral Commission.

Murdoch most foul, but AC John Yates sees no evil

Murdoch's News of the World phone hacking story is playing all around the world (except on Murdoch owned outlets). That's what happens if you run an international news corporation.

Assistant Commissioner John Yates would like to close the file on illegal phone-tapping by Rupert Murdoch's lackeys. At the same time three inquiries are underway, and the tappees are consulting their lawyers. What is the betting that the files held by the Met will accidentally get shredded by a careless secretary?

Clearly, Rupert Murdoch (whose News Group has paid out £1million to three persons unknown on condition that they keep schtum) has a friendly relationship with John Yates, or will have, after this decision.

Maybe Murdoch's News International is too big to jail, in Yates' view.

Bankers, politicians, now newspapers and possibly the Met: all masters, all found indulging in dodgy activity of one kind or another. The bigger they come, the harder they fall, one and all. Like the Iranian regime, they are all engaged in a desperate pretence that the world can continue with Business as Usual. It cannot. We will see radical reform of our power structures in coming months and years.

Deepcuts into democratic values

Sickened by the news that there will still be no public inquiry into Deepcut Army Barracks in the UK, where there have been four deaths among recruits and 100 allegations of racism, serious physical abuse, rape and beatings. One of the recruits died of 2 (two) gunshot wounds to the head, and the official report refused to rule out suicide.

It could not be clearer that the situation needs to be fully investigated, but government clings to secrecy as tightly as some old style Soviet regime. What goes on in the minds of the officials who command the ministers to follow these obscurantist policies? Command is not too strong a word, for if the same ministers were in opposition they would be howling for an inquiry, but now they are in government, they are accomplices to the deception. Do they not realise that the truth will out in the end? Perhaps they look to Guantanamo, to Votergate, to the many other dirty secrets that government can get away with, and believe that truth can be defeated. We are looking at a collective failure of our political systems, abetted by the supine posture of journalism as a profession; they have lost their cutting edge, their investigative tendencies. The "best lack all conviction, while the worst are filled with passionate intensity."

In the past I have recklessly tweaked the tail of the tiger of nuclear power in the comany of a few dedicated greens, and marched with thousands to protest at the threat of a nuclear holocaust; but I was less deeply nervous then than I am now, in the face of events like Votergate, Guantanamo Bay and now Deepcut, where power seems immune from any real form of criticism.