Friday, February 22, 2008

Lee Jasper, the media...

Yesterday's post that the police have stated that they cannot charge Lee Jasper with any offences seems to have caused a stir. There are two points here:
  1. My main point from yesterday being that the Evening Standard had been all over the Lee Jasper story, but once something that didn't suit their line came out, almost nothing
  2. Second being that commented on here yesterday by the "GLA Spokesperson" that nobody has actually presented the police with criminal allegations - they'd much rather mouth off to the press than have to offer substantive proof

I have no vested interest in Lee Jasper and I've no idea whether any of these allegations have any vestige of truth about them. My point is that the Tory media are hounding him and are using people like Richard Barnes to do their dirty work. As yet Barnes hasn't come forward and given whatever evidence he may have for making these allegations to the police.

Therefore, I find Libdemvoice's thoughts amusing, when they say my post was "Labour spin" about the police "clearing" Jasper of charges he hasn't been charged with. The challenge is actually to see whether Barnes will put up or shut up - and the Evening Standard will follow suit.

I'm not going to respond in detail to Sharon's charge sheet, these charges are not for me to answer. If the police cannot investigate because nobody has made any allegations to them, the same applies to the District Auditor, someone has to complain for there to be an investigation. My experience from Islington and the Standards Board's investigation into the appointment of Helen Bailey by the Lib Dems as Chief Executive of the council isn't a good one. Aside from the findings, it took three and a half years, lots of expense, while Bailey remained in post.

4 comments:

Colm said...

Yes, as you say there is nothing particularly concrete to pin on Livingstone here. If there was a tape of him conspiring to assault a journalist or something of that order I would be more convinced that he wasn't fit for office.

Unknown said...

Here is the Radio 4, Today programme of the serialisation of the actions undertaken by Lee Jasper to stop Labour's Trevor Phillips from getting the job as Head of the new CEHR (Commission for Equalities and Human Rights.)

As part of this campaign it is reported that Lee Jasper authorised payment of £14,500 to Anne Kane to "dig the dirt" on Trevor Phillips.

It is then alledged that Lee Jasper used his friends in the 1990 Trust, National Assembly Against Racism et al to distribute the dirt about Trevor Phillips.

It is not clear whether Ken Livingstone had a hand in any of this.

Dispatches, Channel 4 state that Anne Kane was part of the 'Socialist Action' sect.

Given the involvment of both Radio 4 and Channel 4, I am not sure how we conclude that this is just about the Evening Standard


Listen to the Radio 4 serialisation and let me know what you think.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/today/listenagain/ram/today3_trevor_20080119.ram

Yednnek said...

"reported", "alleged", "not clear" ... hmmm!? Sounds like a closed case to me.

Colm said...

I can't seem to find Socialist Action on the Home Office's list of proscribed terrorist organisations either:

http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/security/terrorism-and-the-law/terrorism-act/proscribed-groups

Or is the accusation that a left wing politician has left wing associates? Shocking.