KALI IN THE CLEAR! MPs sleaze probe dismisses allegation

Huddersfield Daily Examiner (Huddersfield, England), Dec 11, 2007

Byline: By SAM CASEY News Reporter

A SLEAZE probe into cash received by MP Kali Mountford has been dismissed.

Ms Mountford was one of 12 female LabourMPs accused of failing todeclare a gift from campaign group Emily's List.

Conservative MP Nadine Dorries, who made the allegations, called on the Standards Commission to investigate.

But Sir Philip Mawer, the parliamentary commissioner for standards who looked at the claims, has now said the MPs did nothing wrong.

MsMountford (pictured), who always maintained her innocence, welcomed the news.

She said: "This was obviously a political attempt to smear a number of people and was a vexatious complaint without any foundation.

"It was all a bit of a nonsense. I knew I had done nothing wrong.

"I'm happy to let it rest now but I know some of the others will make counter-complaints because they are very angry about it."

Emily's List - an acronym for Early Money Is Like Yeast (it makes the dough rise) - provides money and support to prospective women candidates in the Labour Party.

It is also campaigns for the right of women to choose whether or not to have an abortion. To qualify for cash, each candidate must declare they support the campaign.

Mrs Dorries claimed MPs who were granted money by Emily's List had compromised their neutrality and effectively sold their votes.

She said they should have declared an interest regarding abortion.

In a letter to Mrs Dorries, Sir Philip said 11 of the 12 MPs, including Ms Mountford, had been given sums from pounds 100 to pounds 923.

But they had all received the money before they were elected, so were not required to declare it.

He also dismissed the allegation their neutrality would have been compromised.

He said: "All of the members are adamant that the money they received was for the purpose of helping them to become Labour candidates and that it came without any binding expectation or contract as to the way they would vote on the abortion issue."

He said many of them agreed with the pro-choice view before they received the donations. "Others have pointed out forcefully that being in favour of a woman's right to choose whether or not to have an abortion does not necessarily mean that one is pro-abortion," he added.

He said they had not broken any rules and told Mrs Dorries: "I therefore dismiss your complaint."