A ROW around alleged "dirty money" in the UK erupted on Thursday night’s BBC Question Time.
Panellist David Lammy, Labour MP and Shadow Foreign Secretary challenged Tory panel member James Cleverly MP, Foreign minister around the issue, arguing that while the issue had began when Labour was in power, it has gotten “considerably worse” under the Westminster Tory government.
“We are still waiting to see the [Russell report] properly implemented”, Lammy continued, “Why is it that we’ve had a change to our election bill that means that political parties can receive donations from nationals overseas uncapped? Why won’t you give that £2 million back that Putin-linked people gave to your party?
“And if you’re not going to give it back, give the money to the Ukraine resistance fund.”
“Give the money to the Ukraine resistance fund.”
— BBC Question Time (@bbcquestiontime) February 24, 2022
“You’ve had plenty of time to shout at me, do you want to keep talking or do you want to do a bit of listening?”
The Conservatives’ @jamescleverly and Labour’s @DavidLammy clash over foreign money in British politics. #bbcqt pic.twitter.com/kn84eNT6gN
Cleverly rebutted by stating the donations were made by British dual nationals who are legitimate donors registered with the Electoral Commission, and that Lammy should be “very careful” at suggesting that “all donations by Russians are somehow dirty because some Russians are corrupt”, suggesting this notion was “deeply, deeply racist”.
However, Lammy shot back by pointing out that one of the donors in question was the former finance minister of Putin’s regime.
Fellow panellist Timothy Garton Ash, professor of European studies at Oxford University, entered the heated debate to state that both the Labour and Conservative party had to take accountability. He continued: “The larger point is that we in Britain as a whole have been far too welcoming to dirty money, not just from Russia but from all over the world - from China, from the Middle East, from everywhere.
“It’s become a real running sore of our country and I think that together we have to do something about it.”
Meanwhile, an audience member expressed exasperation at the Westminster political leadership, stating: “I feel really embarrassed of our political leaders. Is Boris really the man to lead us through this when he’s proven himself to be either stupid or a liar?”
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