0910 Hrs GMT London Friday 13 February 2009
From the web site thisislondon.co.uk that carries the contents of the London EVENING Nostandards STANDARD
Lobby groups 'lavish gifts on civil servants'
Joe Murphy
12.02.09
Top civil servants are being bombarded with free drinks, football tickets, shows and concerts by lobbyists seeking to influence Whitehall, it was revealed today.
Figures have laid bare for the first time the scale of the secret charm offensive mounted by lobbyists.
Most hospitality involved drinks or dinners but the more lavish treats included tickets to top sporting events such as Wimbledon, the Derby, the Tour de France and Chelsea football matches.
Trips to the Proms and the Chelsea Flower Show were also given to government officials.
The disclosure of the "perks for access" comes a day after Gordon Brown told MPs he was worried about the activities of commercial lobbyists.
Concern has grown since four Labour peers were taped offering to amend legislation in the Lords for fees and the Prime Minister has said he would consider a mandatory register of lobbyists.
The Government has now revealed for the first time a detailed list of hospitality received by the most senior civil servants.
It shows one mandarin, Sir Brian Bender, permanent secretary of the Business and Regulatory Reform department, attended 52 functions - or one event a week.
Gus O'Donnell, the Cabinet Secretary, enjoyed hospitality only eight times, while the most senior official at Culture Media and Sport, Jonathan Stephens, recorded 37.
Some departments were showered with far more gifts than others with those dealing directly with business and, or, controlling government contracts clearly favoured.
Officials at the Ministry of Defence listed 221 out of the 1,739 events recorded, with permanent secretary Sir Bill Jeffrey listing 22 events.
Second biggest was the departments for Business whose officials listed 198 events - more than a quarter of which involved Sir Brian. It was followed by Transport, with 146 events, and Health, with 143.
By contrast, the Department for International Development recorded three items of hospitality and the department for Children, Schools and Families 16.
Big companies were usually the hosts at events. Bosses group the CBI was the most prolific, with 41 instances of hospitality, followed by electronics firm Fujitsu.
A string of private sector consultancies vying for government work were among those frequently listed as hosts, including accountants KPMG, Pricewaterhousecooper, Ernst & Young and Deloittes.
The list was compiled after requests for information made under Labour's Freedom of Information laws.
While the British civil service is regarded by ministers as the most honest in the world, there is concern about lobbyists gaining influence.
In the Commons, the Prime Minister said in response to calls for a register of lobbyists: "I agree we have got to take very seriously the problem of lobbyists and what they are doing in both the House of Lords and the House of Commons so we will have to look at all measures that can make the system work better."
The four peers accused of being willing to amend legislation for fees of up to £120,000 were Lord Truscott, Lord Moonie, Lord Taylor of Blackburn and Lord Snape.
All deny wrongdoing and last night the Met announced it would not mount a criminal investigation into the allegations, made after a newspaper sting.
A further four peers - Lord Berkeley, Lord O'Neill of Clackmannan, Baroness Valentine and Baroness Coussins - are also alleged to have sought to influence legislation in the interests of organisations paying them. They too deny wrongdoing.
Ministers are considering an overhaul of parliamentary sleaze rules that could see MPs banned from earning extra cash and peers kicked out for serious misbehaviour.
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Corrupt greedy swine the lot of them
Who pays for this ? Not the smoozers or the companies who wine and dine. In the end it is us , the 'ordinary' folk
They have stolen democracy from under our noses. How do we wrest it back , I wonder.
- J B Blackett, Hendon
Unfortunately the Lords and MPs have already set such a bad example that their lackeys now follow suit, too.
- Nobby Clark, Perth, Scotland
Very strange. We are not allowed to accept any gifts or hospitality whatsoever in the civil service, and even if we were given a £2.50 book it has to be registered in the Gifts and Hospitality Register. This has got to be the very top layer of civil servants doing this, but then, why does that not surprise me!
- Sue, Orpington, Kent
33rd year AADHIKAR
0225 GMT Thursday 06 June 2013
AADHIKAR Media Foundation Editor © Muhammad Haque
Founding News Editor
Shah M Azizul Haque
AADHIKAR Media Foundation established with the publication of AADHIKAR the weekly on Monday 19 December 1980 from London E1 UK.
Friday, February 13, 2009
KHOODEELAAR! TOLD YOU SO! That the UK DfT, the Crossrail scam-peddling Big Business touting Department was letting down people in the UK
0700 Hrs GMT London Friday 13 February 2009:
By © Muhammad Haque
KHOODEELAAR! No to ‘unconstitutionality’, No to ‘unaccountability’, No to ‘Untruthfulness’ by holders of publicly paid-for, publicly-‘justified’ posts and positions of ‘power of decision-making in the name of the public’….. No to ‘crassly conceived, corruptly promoted, diversionary, wasteful, Crossrail hole scam’ CAMPAIGN TOLD YOU SO! That the UK Department for Transport, DfT=DAFT was stuffed full of touts, agents, stooges and tools for interests OTHER than the actually civil and loyal servants for the delivery of service to the UK public….. HAS been confirmed yet again….It is being shown in the latest ‘decision’ ‘personally’ claimed by Geoff Hoon [who was again described as Buffoon over the previous week] in relation to the ‘high speed’ ‘trains construction announcement stunt’ staged during Thursday 12 February 2009… Hoon was interviewed on BBC News Channel [on Thursday morning, Thursday 12 February 2009] by Carrie Gracie who just about managed to put to him questions about the unjustified behaviour of some of the big business perpetrators of greed and corruption [the word ‘corruption’ was not used by the BBC presenter but it was meant all the way] at the expense of the UK public….. Hoon’s responses did not amount to any revelation of the truth, far less any evidence of any prioritisation by the Brown-fronted Blaired regime in the UK of the truth or of truthfulness in decision-making…. Hoon was allowed by the BBC to spout out without challenges on evidence a selection of the phrases that have come to be associated with ministerial utterances on the BBC in the context of the current climate of economic downturn and the increasing number of people being forced to face joblessness in this country…. The shallowness of the slogans that are founded on the assumption that some un-named ‘global’ influence is behind the economic mess and the financial dishonesty and the regulatory corruption and the political sleaze being witnessed in the UK every week …was once again exposed in the words that Hoon uttered, and in the fact that as he uttered them he looked totally without any enthusiasm about the words he was uttering…. Yet he said he was himself making a ‘modes’ contribution to creating jobs for ‘British’ people … This last and significantly strategic claim is exposed as a sham this morning in a piece carried by the London INDEPENDENT news organisation.. This particular item is being treated as relatively more significant than any carried by any of the Independent’s ‘rivals’ so far
By © Muhammad Haque
KHOODEELAAR! No to ‘unconstitutionality’, No to ‘unaccountability’, No to ‘Untruthfulness’ by holders of publicly paid-for, publicly-‘justified’ posts and positions of ‘power of decision-making in the name of the public’….. No to ‘crassly conceived, corruptly promoted, diversionary, wasteful, Crossrail hole scam’ CAMPAIGN TOLD YOU SO! That the UK Department for Transport, DfT=DAFT was stuffed full of touts, agents, stooges and tools for interests OTHER than the actually civil and loyal servants for the delivery of service to the UK public….. HAS been confirmed yet again….It is being shown in the latest ‘decision’ ‘personally’ claimed by Geoff Hoon [who was again described as Buffoon over the previous week] in relation to the ‘high speed’ ‘trains construction announcement stunt’ staged during Thursday 12 February 2009… Hoon was interviewed on BBC News Channel [on Thursday morning, Thursday 12 February 2009] by Carrie Gracie who just about managed to put to him questions about the unjustified behaviour of some of the big business perpetrators of greed and corruption [the word ‘corruption’ was not used by the BBC presenter but it was meant all the way] at the expense of the UK public….. Hoon’s responses did not amount to any revelation of the truth, far less any evidence of any prioritisation by the Brown-fronted Blaired regime in the UK of the truth or of truthfulness in decision-making…. Hoon was allowed by the BBC to spout out without challenges on evidence a selection of the phrases that have come to be associated with ministerial utterances on the BBC in the context of the current climate of economic downturn and the increasing number of people being forced to face joblessness in this country…. The shallowness of the slogans that are founded on the assumption that some un-named ‘global’ influence is behind the economic mess and the financial dishonesty and the regulatory corruption and the political sleaze being witnessed in the UK every week …was once again exposed in the words that Hoon uttered, and in the fact that as he uttered them he looked totally without any enthusiasm about the words he was uttering…. Yet he said he was himself making a ‘modes’ contribution to creating jobs for ‘British’ people … This last and significantly strategic claim is exposed as a sham this morning in a piece carried by the London INDEPENDENT news organisation.. This particular item is being treated as relatively more significant than any carried by any of the Independent’s ‘rivals’ so far
KHOODEELAAR! TOLD Boris Johnson SO! No to ‘CRASS role by Boris Johnson’ abusing ‘position of mayor in name of people of London’!
0130 Hrs GMT London Friday 13 February 2009:
CRASS role by Crossrail scam-peddling Boris Johnson!
KHOODEELAAR! TOLD Boris Johnson SO! No to ‘CRASS role by Boris Johnson’ abusing ‘position of mayor in name of people of London’!
By Muhammad Haque
0100 Hrs GMT London Friday 13 February 2009:
KHOODEELAAR! TOLD YOU SO!
Boris Johnson IS now heading for a career-crash that can only land him deep in a hole of his own making...
That will also vindicate our warning of the past 18 months or so that he must stay and steer well and truly clear of the forces and agencies of Big Business Crossrail hole scam….
It is clear that Boris Johnson does not do listening to sound advice well. In fact, he does not do listening to sound advice at all…..
He is getting very close to the political precipice that he cannot avoid if he is allowed to remain unguarded for any more time….
THE ONLY way that Boris Johnson can avert the otherwise well-deserved crash of his career and related careerist enterprises is for him to halt the diversionary movements...
KHOODEELAAR! advised Boris Johnson just under two years ago in 2007 to show that he, Boris Johnson, possessed the key qualities which he needed if he were to make any serious and effective pro-democratic, pro-accountability case [at that time in the context of the then forthcoming London elections] against the incumbent Ken Lyingstill Livingstone...
Throughout the rest of the year 2007 KHOODEELAAR! took extra time and incurred additional expenses of resource and energy ion searching for a way to offer from the ethical, moral and physical distance, the requisite democratic and constitutional advice to Boris Johnson….
We made known to him quite publicly that if he took our advice he caudal be able to dislodge the Corrupter of London…
We said that if he did not then he would find that he had created for himself a litany of liabilities that would make those of Ken Livingstone's own ego-centric and personality-enhancing trips and career look quite ‘understandable’ in comparison…. Boris Johnson has shown that he is unregulated [there is a word!] in his own self-promotion..
And that he is set to crash in a most disappointing display of incompetence and irrelevance for which ordinary people of London will pay….
[To be continued]
___________
CRASS role by Crossrail scam-peddling Boris Johnson!
KHOODEELAAR! TOLD Boris Johnson SO! No to ‘CRASS role by Boris Johnson’ abusing ‘position of mayor in name of people of London’!
By Muhammad Haque
0100 Hrs GMT London Friday 13 February 2009:
KHOODEELAAR! TOLD YOU SO!
Boris Johnson IS now heading for a career-crash that can only land him deep in a hole of his own making...
That will also vindicate our warning of the past 18 months or so that he must stay and steer well and truly clear of the forces and agencies of Big Business Crossrail hole scam….
It is clear that Boris Johnson does not do listening to sound advice well. In fact, he does not do listening to sound advice at all…..
He is getting very close to the political precipice that he cannot avoid if he is allowed to remain unguarded for any more time….
THE ONLY way that Boris Johnson can avert the otherwise well-deserved crash of his career and related careerist enterprises is for him to halt the diversionary movements...
KHOODEELAAR! advised Boris Johnson just under two years ago in 2007 to show that he, Boris Johnson, possessed the key qualities which he needed if he were to make any serious and effective pro-democratic, pro-accountability case [at that time in the context of the then forthcoming London elections] against the incumbent Ken Lyingstill Livingstone...
Throughout the rest of the year 2007 KHOODEELAAR! took extra time and incurred additional expenses of resource and energy ion searching for a way to offer from the ethical, moral and physical distance, the requisite democratic and constitutional advice to Boris Johnson….
We made known to him quite publicly that if he took our advice he caudal be able to dislodge the Corrupter of London…
We said that if he did not then he would find that he had created for himself a litany of liabilities that would make those of Ken Livingstone's own ego-centric and personality-enhancing trips and career look quite ‘understandable’ in comparison…. Boris Johnson has shown that he is unregulated [there is a word!] in his own self-promotion..
And that he is set to crash in a most disappointing display of incompetence and irrelevance for which ordinary people of London will pay….
[To be continued]
___________