More Labour sleaze, surprise surprise

More Labour sleaze, surprise surprise

We are not surprised to learn - from a number of sources, including Noman Tahir and the Sunday Times (hat tip: Osama Saeed who has written a fascinating article on the subject) - that Labour is embroiled in a new sleaze scandal. An alleged front organisation, Muslim Friends of Labour, apparently gave £300,000 to the Labour Party. According to the Sunday Times,

“Imran Khand, a Glasgow-based entrepreneur, is revealed as a leading financial backer behind Muslim Friends … As his money is paid to Muslim Friends - rather than directly to the Labour party - his identity has until now remained secret. The Electoral Commission is probing whether Labour has broken laws on the disclosure of donations by hiding the true source of its financing. Khand is a close associate of Mohammad Sarwar, the controversial Labour MP who chairs the organisation…”

This is an unauspicious start to Gordon Brown’s premiership and Wendy Alexander’s leadership of Scottish Labour – a sleaze scandal already – but it would be worse if this alleged activity had resulted in Labour clinging on to power in Scotland. At most, it can be said to have allowed Labour to maintain a number of seats (possibly including Glasgow Kelvin with a Labour majority of 1,207 over the SNP, or Eastwood with a majority of 891 over the Tories) that it would have lost had not been for this funding.

We hope that the Electoral Commission comes up with more convincing findings than those of the inquiry into Cash for Peerages.