Chief among Nick Clegg’s grand claims during this election is that he is Britain’s ‘most honest’ political leader.
Chief among Nick Clegg’s grand claims during this election is that he is Britain’s ‘most honest’ political leader. The Lib Dems, he promises, will clean up our politics. And when it comes to politicians using expenses to game the property market or to dodge capital gains tax, he’s delighted to declare his party squeaky clean. ‘Not a single Liberal Democrat MP,’ he swanked in last week’s debate, ‘did either of those things.’ House flipping, it seems, is too gauche for the yellow party. Their expenses scam was a more nuanced affair.
In fact, before the expenses scandal blew up, the Lib Dems centrally directed their MPs to exploit their own claims as ruthlessly as possible for party purposes. Take, for example, a 2008 presentation in which Lib Dem MPs were advised to ‘maximise the amount being claimed’ and wangle taxpayers’ money to fund campaign literature in defiance of the spirit (but not the letter) of Westminster rules.
Comments
Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just $5 for 3 monthsAlready a subscriber? Log in