1:00pm Saturday 6th February 2010
By Paul Teed
Ann Keen has waded into the debate over Lord Ashcroft’s donations to the Conservative Party by declaring: “You can’t buy this seat.”
The Brentford and Isleworth MP sent a clear message to Tory campaigners in her constituency following claims the controversial peer had set up a fund targeting marginal seats, including Brentford.
She said: “I am an experienced MP with a proven track record of delivering change in the constituency. Judge that against PR stunts, glossy air-brushed images and donations to the Tory campaign from abroad.”
Lord Ashcroft’s companies and his wife have reportedly donated £4.8m to the Conservatives since the last election, but he will not confirm if he pays tax in Britain.
Mary Macleod, Conservative parliamentary candidate for Brentford and Isleworth, said the peer contributed less than 5 per cent of donations to the party last year, and insisted none of his cash had directly funded her campaign.
Her team has been delivering 40,000 election leaflets a month in a bid to unseat Mrs Keen, costing up to £2,000 a round.
She said: “The Labour MP in this constituency receives a £10,000 taxpayer-funded communications allowance annually, so it is immediately not a level playing field for any other candidate.
“The Conservative headquarter’s funding attempts to address this imbalance.”
She added: “I am not going to try dirty political games and personal attacks to win at the general election. I will fight on issues and concerns that are really important to address in our communities.”
Councillor Andrew Dakers, Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate for Brentford and Isleworth, said it was “neither fair nor democratic” for a multi-millionaire with an unclear tax status to shape the outcome of a general election.
He said: “To reduce the excessive influence of a few individuals the Liberal Democrats have argued that donations from a single donor should be capped at £50,000 per annum. Unfortunately, as yet, neither Labour nor the Conservatives have chosen to support this.”
Sir Thomas Legg’s report on MPs’ abuse of the expenses system yesterday revealed Mrs Keen has repaid £2,643 since April last year.
The Health Minister and her husband Alan Keen, MP for Feltham and Heston, overclaimed for cleaning costs by £790 in 2006-07.
The Commons fees office had wrongly paid Mr Keen £1,790 and Mrs Keen £1,000 for the same house.
Sir Thomas recommended Mr Keen still had £345 to pay back, while his wife has already returned her half of the excess.
A spokeswoman for parliamentary standards commissioner John Lyon confirmed this week his inquiry into whether the couple abused their second home allowance
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