Chris Huhne faces allegation over election expenses

Energy secretary denies a complaint made to the Electoral Commision that he made a ‘false declaration’ of expenses The energy secretary, Chris Huhne, came under further pressure on Saturday, after it emerged that he faces a complaint about his general election expenses. Two former Liberal Democrat councillors have submitted a complaint to the Electoral Commission alleging that Huhne, who already faces allegations that he tried to evade punishment for speeding, made a “false declaration” of his campaign expenses last year. The new allegation is based on a recording of a local party meeting in his Eastleigh constituency in Hampshire, where treasurer Anne Winstanley is heard saying that the campaign “cost more than we declared”. Huhne has denied the charge, while his aides said the claims were was based on a misunderstanding of was said at the meeting. “These election expenses have been thoroughly checked and accepted by the Electoral Commission,” Huhne said: “I have no reason to believe there are any irregularities.” But the complaint will add to the pressure on the Liberal Democrat cabinet minister. Essex Police are already looking into allegations that in 2003 he persuaded his then wife, Vicky Pryce, to accept speeding penalty points on his behalf so he could escape a driving ban , a charge he also denies. The complaint about his election expenses was made by former Lib Dem mayor Glynn Davies-Dear, now an independent councillor on Eastleigh borough council, and former Lib Dem councillor Andy Moore. Both men quit the party in January in protest at the coalition’s policies. In their complaint, they say: “We are in possession of evidence of a false declaration of the electoral expenses of Chris Huhne MP in the 2010 general election. “The evidence takes the form of an iPhone aural recording of a presentation by the treasurer to the Liberal Democrat Party’s constituency executive committee in June 2010, substantiated by a paper copy of the election accounts. “The Treasurer clearly and unequivocally states that total expenses formally declared were £50,000 while actual expenses were £60,000.” Under election law, candidates are limited to how much they can spend during an election campaign depending on the number of voters in their constituency. However, the political parties can spend an unlimited amount of the their nationally allotted spending in any given constituency. Local parties were also able to spend on campaigning for council elections held on the same day. Lib Dem aides said the sums referred to in the meeting covered all campaigning in the constituency, and not just Huhne’s individual campaign expenses. In a statement, Winstanley said: “The general election expenses were as declared to the Electoral Commission. Additional expenditure in this period was for the local election campaigns, or not attributable to the campaign.” A spokesman for the Electoral Commission said: “We’ve received an allegation relating to Chris Huhne’s spending on last year’s election, and we will be looking at it, and any evidence provided.” Chris Huhne MPs’ expenses Liberal Democrats Liberal-Conservative coalition David Batty guardian.co.uk

Posted by on May 21, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.