Chris Huhne speeding points file passed to CPS

Police pass file to prosecutors after reviewing a tape recording in which the energy minister and his then wife discussed the matter Police have handed a file to the Crown Prosecution Service following an investigation into allegations that the energy secretary, Chris Huhne, avoided speeding points to escape a driving ban. The Liberal Democrat minister faces claims that he persuaded Vicky Pryce, his then wife, to accept a three-point penalty on his behalf in March 2003 to avoid a driving ban. He denies the allegation. Huhne and Pryce were interviewed again last week after police obtained a court order to take possession of a tape recording in which the former couple apparently discuss the case. A CPS spokesperson said: “We have received a file of evidence from Essex police in relation to allegations involving Christopher Huhne and Vicky Pryce. This file will be reviewed under the code for crown prosecutors and a decision on whether to charge will be made in due course.” The development came on a day that the Lib Dem minister was cleared of wrongdoing over his expenses for last year’s general election following an investigation by the electoral watchdog. The investigation was prompted by complaints that Huhne had under-reported the amount spent on his campaign. The Electoral Commission said it was taking no action against the Eastleigh MP, after finding only minor discrepancies in his election expense returns. Under election law, candidates’ spending is limited for both the “short campaign period” immediately before the vote and the “long campaign period” before it. Mr Huhne reported spending of £18,608.56 for the long campaign against a limit of £28,874.80 and £10,911.05 for the short campaign against a limit of £11,024.80. The Electoral Commission investigation found that the cost of his campaign website was £45.15, rather than the £35 reported, but noted that this still left him well within spending limits. It found that the decision to allocate spending totalling around £5,400 to the national Liberal Democrat campaign, rather than to Huhne’s personal campaign for the Eastleigh seat, was “reasonable and in line with Electoral Commission guidance”. The watchdog wrote to the party asking it to review its procedures, after it emerged that the cash attributed to the national campaign by Huhne’s team was not declared in the national expense returns. The commission also wrote to Huhne asking him to take more care with future campaign literature, after finding that some letters did not accurately carry the name of their printer, as they are required to. In a statement, the commission said: “On the basis of the evidence considered, the commission do not believe that further action is required. Huhne said: “The Electoral Commission is very clear that the campaign was properly within the legal limits, as I always maintained, and I am delighted that we have such a clear conclusion to this investigation. This is the second review caused by misinformed and politically motivated complaints, and it now means that all the complaints concerning my campaign have been rejected.” Chris Huhne Liberal Democrats Liberal-Conservative coalition Hélène Mulholland guardian.co.uk

Posted by on July 27, 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.