Ministers Code of Conduct Loop
Holes
David
Cameron has told parliament that MPs should pass any information they
have on phone hacking to the police. You may remember an article ‘Fighting
Talk from Vince Cable’ in which Vic Farron wrote.... Vince
Cable expressed some of his personal thoughts to the two undercover
reporters who recorded the whole conversation. It was the remark he
made, that he had declared war on Richard Murdock over the
purchase of BSkyB, apparently he had discovered a legal precedent
which would stop the deal, hence the terminology ‘ declared
war’ "We've stopped Murdoch taking over BSkyB,
or referred it to the competition authorities.”That would have
never happened under the Tories. They would have just said, 'Here
you are Mr Murdoch, how much do you want?” Vince Cable
was right about that, as he was also right about child benefit being
cut.
It would appear that with the confidence Vince cable had about stopping
the BSkyB takeover, he had probably discovered more on the phone hacking
than was already known. He was publicly and privately admonished by
David Cameron and Nick Clegg over his remarks, and removed from the
post of overseeing the BSkyB takeover. It would be reasonable that
when David Cameron and Nick Clegg asked what information he had uncovered,
they too could have information or the police.
The Prime Minister David Cameron and the Culture secretary Mr Jeremy
Hunt were the only two people who opposed the request from the full
house that the takeover of BSkyB be referred back to the Competition
Commission, on the question of the corporate governance of News international
as more and more revelation are exposed. They both claimed they had
done everything within the law, and it was a widely held suspicion
that they both were prepared to simply wave through the take over,
without regards to due diligence being carried out on the corporate
governance of News international.
They both held out against the house for two days, which raised the
question why? Ed Milliband backed by Nick Clegg forced a vote which
overwhelmingly went against the PM, forcing him to refer it back to
the Monopolies Commission and he was also pushed into setting up the
Culture Committee Inquiry.
The PM is continually being put on the back foot through his lack
of leadership and poor judgement. His latest imitative to revive his
creditability is to require ministers to record all meetings with
media owners and senior executives, and publish them. This comes after
the revelation of the number of times Cameron invited News International
owners and execs to Chequers at the tax payer’s expense. He
also required publication of the meetings with these people at no.10.
He did of coarse give himself a get out clause, this will not require
the PM to divulge invites and over night stays at Chequers for anyone
who is invited as a personal guest of the PM, these will remain secret
from parliament and the public. Conference calls, to or by, the media
hierarchy will also be kept secret from parliament, and the public.
This is in line with the government’s manifesto of a Fair Government.
He told parliament that ministers should show more ‘openness’.
Sounds like a case of “Do as I say : Not as I do.”
Ron
Gold RFT
Express
Follow
on Twitter I have challenged my mentor Vic Farron that I will
beat him to have 100,000 twitter followers before he does: He has
almost 77,000, I have 37,000 So I need your help, please follow.
Many thanks to the first 37,000.
Tags: Vince
cable, BBC,
Ministerial
Code, What
Did Cameron Know, Murdocks
Evidence, Camerons
openness,
