David Cameron was asked during PMQs today whether or not he would continue hosting dinners at Downing Street with a man named Ian Taylor. He was also urged to return the money Mr Taylor has donated to the Conservative Party.
David Cameron was asked during PMQs today whether or not he would continue hosting dinners at Downing Street with a man named Ian Taylor. He was also asked whether he would be giving back money the same Mr Taylor had donated to the Tory Party.
Mr Cameron gave a curt response, accusing the MP who asked the question – Angus Robertson of the SNP – of playing a “cheap political card”.
So just who is Ian Taylor?
Well first off he is the president and chief executive of the world’s largest oil trader, Vitol, and he has been involved in the oil business for more than 30 years. Since June 2006 he has donated £555,100 to the Tory party. He also dined with David Cameron at Downing Street on 2 November 2011.
In 2001, The Observer revealed that Vitol paid £1 million to Serbian war criminal Željko Ražnatović (better known as Arkan) to arrange an oil deal with the regime of Slobodan Milosevic. For its part Vitol said no illegal conduct was involved in this transaction. According to the the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, Arkan was responsible for at least 24 crimes against humanity, including the murder of civilians, rape and ethnic cleansing.
According to Herald Scotland, Vitol, the company which Ian Taylor head, has also in the past used Employee Benefit Trusts to avoid tax on the incomes of its UK staff and has been in discussion with HMRC about a deal to pay this off.
Is it really acceptable for Mr Cameron to dismiss concerns about donations from someone whose company had a relationship with one of Serbia’s most notorious war criminals in so blase a manner?
64 Responses to “David Cameron’s dodgy money”
Cole
We all know no Tory donor has ever been given a peerage.
OldLb
Exactly.
However, we have people implying here that to give a peerage by a Tory government is corrupt, but if you give money and make sure your candidates are on the list, like the Unions, its all OK.
Wake up. It’s all corrupt.
Alec
You’re a day late, Mary. The fun’s been had.
~alec
Alec
In passing, with the caveat that you weren’t in the SNP so didn’t feel they spoke for you. You were much more animated about Labour, BT and the Tories; despite presumably not supporting one of them. You were not being consistent.
And for the umpteenth time, you were not being asked to choose between Souter and Taylor. You made a comment for which one reasonable interpretation was setting-up just such a zero sum game. You were asked for clarification. You were asked for clarification. You were asked for clarification. You were asked again.
You dug in your heels and kept repeating the original comment. You were hiding something, or you were churlishly declining to acquiesce to a basic rule of argument of openness so, when you e-e-e-e-e-ventually answered, you could say “ha-ha, you were wrong”.
No, you were being purposefully obtuse.
Now, as Richas has offered a convincing deconstruction of the Taylor/Vitol story, you’ve changed your line to any donation from a Tory is proof positive of bad intent and the original claims (even if a convincing refutation has been offered).
You are moving the goal posts.
If you want to support independence and give yourself a Get Out of Gaol Free card with regards to any unsavory aspects to the Party and popular campaign which are leading it – whilst demanding purity tests from everyone else – then that’s your perogative.
Others will make their judgement on your motivations, though.
~alec
Alec
Oh, just stop it. You spent all yesterday evening saying that I was a credulous supporter of BT not to mention a right-winger (cf. something you disagree with).
You might think this sophistry is impressing me. It aint.
~alec