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In his response to a letter from me, Tory candidate for South Swindon Robert Buckland has revealed that his campaign has received funding from Lord Ashcroft, the disgraced Tory donor. Mr Buckland admitted that his campaign has received financial support from the Tory Party Marginal Seats Fund that is bank-rolled by Lord Ashcroft, who does not pay full tax in the UK.
I am glad that Mr Buckland has come clean about how he is paying for his glossy leaflets with the dodgy donations from Lord Ashcroft. He needs to know that the people of Swindon will not let this election be bought by someone who has not fulfilled commitments to become a UK taxpayer.
In my letter to Mr Buckland I asked him to pay back any money that came from Lord Ashcroft, unfortunately he refused to answer this question. My leaflets are paid for by small donations from local people in Swindon and all donations to the local and national Labour Party are declared with complete transparency.
Why should a billionaire who does not pay full taxes in this country be allowed to buy the election in places like Swindon?
Lord Ashcroft has donated over £5,000,000 to the Tory Party and plays a key role in their election strategy. He also regularly accompanies leading Tory MPs on trips abroad. It is estimated that Lord Ashcroft has avoided over £100million of tax in the UK.
David Cameron has proposed banning any ‘non-doms’ in the Houses of Parliament but It seems that he is happy to accept money from Lord Ashcroft to bank-roll his campaign.
Donate to Anne’s campaign in Swindon South
Candidate: Anne Snelgrove
Seat: Swindon South
Currently held by: Labour
Majority: 1565
Candidate website: http://www.annesnelgrove.co.uk/
Local media: CONSERVATIVES in Swindon have rebuffed calls to return political funding linked to controversial donor Lord Ashcroft – Swindon Advertiser