Thread by @allthecitizens

BREAKING: Government fined over PM’s Downing St. flat refurb, as Boris Johnson accused of lying to probe into the works.

The Conservative Party have been fined £17,800 by the Electoral Commission after ‘failing to accurately report a donation and keep a proper accounting record’

The Commission found that the government had failed to fully report a donation of £67,801.72 from Huntswood Associates Ltd, in October last year.

Huntswood is owned by Conservative peer, donor and former Conservative Vice Chair #LordBrownlow.

electoralcommission.org.uk/media-centre/c…

The investigation found that on October 19th, #Huntswood transferred £67,801 to the Conservatives, £15,000 of which was to cover an event, and reported in the Q4 2020 submissions, but the remaining £52,801, initially covered by the Cabinet Office, was not.

The Commission noted that “we know voters have concerns about the transparency of funding of political parties. Reporting requirements are in place so that the public can see where money is coming from, inaccurate reporting risks undermining trust in the system.”

Fresh facts emerged from the investigation indicating the PM Boris Johnson was not only aware of the transaction, but had actually messaged Lord Brownlow as early as Dec 29, 2020 asking him to authorise “further, at that stage unspecified, refurbishment works on the residence’

Originally however, a probe into the matter conducted by fellow peer Lord Geidt, had concluded that “at no point in the eight months until late February 2021, as media reports were emerging, was the Prime Minister made aware”

The refurb itself was played down by ministers at the time, who'd indicated that “people are just more interested in getting on with their daily lives”- though these fresh revelations have once again raised issues of trust and accountability in Westminster
news.sky.com/story/boris-jo…

Brownlow, ranked 521st richest person in the UK, had been recommended for a peerage under Theresa May, and has, both personally and via Huntswood, donated over £3.5 million to the Tories since 2018.

He also, via another co-founded company (Havisham Assets Limited), is one of the biggest investors in Cefinn, the fashion label founded by David Cameron’s wife Samantha
theguardian.com/politics/2021/…

Previously, @allthecitizens reported that Brownlow, in his role as founder and director of #Huntswood, had also benefited from lucrative Government contracts, although there’s no assertion these were won improperly:

https://twitter.com/allthecitizens/status/1387099826781933571?s=20

No.10 has since denied the allegations that Johnson lied to the standards advisor about the works. When asked specifically, a spokesperson responded “No”, adding that the PM hadn’t misled the public…