The Poolie Bunker

When you get asked those sort of questions you never answer…..so why should you expect a reply….?

Even if Farage broke Parliamentary rules in not declaring these gifts, apart from the size of the gift is it any different to Starmer accepting gifts and not declaring them? Starmer apologised and we had to move on, will an apology from Farage suffice in the same way? Should the higher positions be expected to act with higher integrity or is it purely about the money and hence envy?
At the end of the day even if Parliament decides he's broken the rules and boots him out he's still not guilty of any crime.

The question wasn’t directed at you Snowy, I don’t know any politicians who have committed any crimes so that’s why I asked the question.

Big difference between specs and clothes in fact millions which wasn’t declared for some reason, Farage was badly advised, if he had declared it there would have been no comeback, begs the question why didn’t he declare it ?
The Glasses: Starmer declared pairs of designer glasses which Downing Street clarified were for "work" and security requirements while reading documents.The Clothes: High-end clothing donations received by Starmer were initially registered as funds for his "private office". Following advice, they were subsequently re-categorized in the Register of Members' Financial Interests as "donations in kind" for work clothing

It’s about whether the people donating the money would be allowed to make donations to a political party (therefore not convicted criminals, or not from Foreign sources), and about what influence they have over the person receiving the donation.

If Starmer received a gift of a pair of glasses from Specsavers, and the next week he introduced a tax break for opticians, then he would be quite rightly investigated for corruption. If he hadn’t declared the gift, then the corruption is more difficult to track, and may not be caught.

Farage was lobbying for Crypo, he didn’t declare that he had received £5m from a Crypto boss prior to that. If he was lobbying for Crypto based on his manifesto, or his own beliefs, that is fine. If he is doing it because someone paid him to do it, that is illegal.

The purpose of the declarations isn’t so that they just have everything written down, it’s so the ethics committee can spot corruption.

That interesting that no other party apart from Count Binman is the only candidate going to stand, it’s a sham, Farage can’t take the pressure now that he is being scrutinised by the MSM. In the past he held weekly press conferences, they stopped then it was a speech in an empty room. He forgets when re elected he will still be subject to the same accusations as before which could result in another election.
It could be a H’Angus moment, imagine Farage getting beat by a a dust bin !

But he received the gift before he became an MP, therefore is it not true that he wasn't committed to declaring it?, it's like someone becoming an MP for their constituency and having to declare that their Aunt who died 10 years earlier left them money in her will?, is that not the same?

They need to declare everything received in the 12 months prior to being elected.

Funny how the ‘LibLabCon, Cats in a Sack Society’ can work in unison when they are desperate.

Hang on didn't the guy who provided Starmer with the initially unregistered (until he was found out and subsequently apologised which apparently wipes the slate clean) clothing and specs get a free pass into Parliament to come and go as he pleased and lobby as he pleased? It would therefore look suspiciously as if Lord Ali bought the Parliamentary pass with the donations of specs and clothing.
As for breaking the law, the Chancellor broke the law when she rented out her home without the relevant Landlord Licence - although unsurprisingly she wasn't prosecuted.

I gave Jonathan Brash a couple of sherbet lemons in the 12 months before he was elected, they were gifts, does he need to declare that?

Why do you keep defending Farage, he has took millions and not declared it some from a convicted felon, you keep bringing trivialities up to defend Farage and to try and justify your comments. Reeves appointed a letting agent to handle the renting out of her property who failed to notify her about it, that’s why you pay agents.

Jenrick hosting the 10am slot on LBC today, not one of my regular go to stations, he is bound to come in for some ‘’pelters’ re Farage and more so he is now being investigated over a £37000 donation. The Metropolitan Police are investigating a £37,500 donation made to him amid allegations that the funds originated from a foreign source, which is illegal under UK electoral law.

Brash is a man for all seasons and very flexible when it comes to the coming winds of change and self preservation.
All Labour MP’s see Burnham as the ‘lifeboat’ to save their political necks, but you’re only safe when you reach dry land ……and their dry land is far over the horizon.
Brash’s appearances everywhere reminds me of the original 1984 film with images of Big Brother popping up everywhere you look.

As I understand it everything depends on whether 5 million pounds can be construed as a gift . I think 5 million is stretching things and Farage knows he is in the shit . Not saying that other parties are clean and transparent. Far as I’m concerned you can’t trust any of them . They all have their noses in the trough. Never voted in the last election for the first time ever. And why has Farage resigned as an MP if he is as innocent as he says he is . No wonder middle England is disgruntled . Politics is rotten to its core

Where did I defend Farage? I defend the tenet that a person is innocent until proven guilty.
I also believe in principles, in that I expect people that hold great power should be of high integrity and the greater the position the greater the expected integrity. So Starmer broke the rules in accepting gifts without declaring them but he also gave something in return for the gifts, the Parliamentary Pass.
Reeves broke the law regardless of using an agent. You asked for examples of criminality and agent or not, like it or not, Reeves broke the law.
I don't know how many times it takes for things to sink in with you Jamie but I'm not a fan of any politician including Farage. The whole democratic Parliamentary process is well and truly broken and Westminster is a cesspit full of self important, self indulgent individuals.

If you could hand pick your opposition leaders in a GE it would be them. What a huge disappointment to the anti farage brigade they must be..

Dodgy CV's,Expenses and rent not declared etc...Isn't it Labour party policy to always blame staff who have worked for them for years,along with reputable agencies and long serving aides?

For me any politician caught in dodgy dealings should be stood down, they need to be setting the highest standards imo.
It doesn't matter if it's clothes and specs or large amounts of cash, it reflects the character of the person.
Starmer stood on a platform of clearing out the sleaze and restoring trust in politics, he's done neither and in his own actions has proven himself to be a freeloader while at the same time taking money from some of the poorest in society - now doesn't that show leadership and integrity? Boris was no better, and Farage may be proven to be worse.

Have you ever known a reputable estate agent ? I’ll repeat we are talking pennies compared to a politician who said he was skint in a notable December 2017 interview with the Daily Mail, the former UKIP leader stated: "I'm 53, separated and skint," claiming there was "no money in politics" and that he had spent 20 years "spending more than you earn". He made similar comments earlier that year in May 2017 while appearing on the BBC News Victoria Derbyshire programme.
Fast forward to 2026 Nigel Farage and his partner, Laure Ferrari, own or live in a property portfolio estimated to be worth more than £4 million. Farage personally owns or controls at least four mortgage-free homes, with a fifth owned by his partner. He said there was no money in politics but Farage appears to done alright from politics ?

Reeves was the Landlord who broke the law, end of.
Any prosecution would have been against Her and not the agent, that's the law. She wasn't prosecuted when many other private landlords in similar circumstances were.
Not many go into politics and come out poorer and that's a fact, regardless of party.
As things stand, Farage is not under investigation for criminal proceedings.
Politicians taking bungs seems to be acceptable to you as long as they're of some indeterminate financial value and they're Labour. And it's a matter of record that since 2017 your mate Starmer has declared more gifts than any other politician, the total sum being over £110,000.
There's a saying that those who make the law shouldn't break the law, essentially they should be whiter than white. The man who took the moral high ground in sleaze whilst in opposition is as dodgy as an Arfur Daly motor.

£5000000 - £110000 =4,890,000 ?

Letting Agent Error: Correspondence showed her letting agency originally agreed to handle the selective licence application, but the staff member overseeing the property resigned abruptly, resulting in an administrative oversight.Council Enforcement Policy:
Southwark Council stated it only issues fines to landlords who fail to respond to formal warning notices or whose properties are found to be in unsafe condition.
Immediate Compliance: Once the omission was brought to her attention, Reeves submitted the application and apologized for the error.
Ministerial Clearance: Following an investigation, Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his independent ethics advisor declared the breach "inadvertent" and closed the matter, as the ministerial code permits an apology as sufficient resolution for minor or unintentional administrative oversights

He hasn't been found guilty of any breaches of the law or by the ethics committee though has he?
Whereas Starmer was found to have not declared gifts he should have.
Regardless of your waffle, the Landlord is accountable for compliance with the law not the agent. It was Reeves who broke the law but wasn't prosecuted.
As I said you seem to acknowledge that a bit of dodginess is acceptable if you're Labour. I don't.

But we’d be left with the sheep bleating on the back benches and no one to lead them.

Farage was rich before he came into politics, he was a successful city boy.I would have thought you would have known this???

We are talking £500 million dodginess, being associated with a known felon, Fiona Cottrell, the mother of convicted fraudster and long-time Nigel Farage aide George Cottrell, is the subject of an ongoing Metropolitan Police criminal investigation. The inquiry is looking into at least £500,000 in donations she made to Reform UK prior to the 2024 UK General Election.
Farage has made a huge mistake by calling an election, the focus would have been on Burnham, if he hadn’t. He should have rode it out even if it meant an election at a later day. Can you imagine him doing interviews re the election, I doubt he will be facing the MSM.
Now Farage faces the embarrassment of standing against Mount Bin and if the electorate vote in numbers it will be an embarrassment maybe another H’Angus scenario ?

And yet he hasn't been found guilty of anything yet?
Starmer appointed a known associate of one of the worst paedophiles in British history as US Ambassador FFS - guilty as charged.
£110k of freebies is ok but an alleged £5m isn't, smacks of a lack of integrity and / or plain jealousy to me.
There's more honour among thieves than there is among our Right Honourable representatives.

Has Farage ever heard of H’Angus.
Because all those who now have no candidate te vote for , May switch to the ’Bin man’ en masse, he’s in trouble… and humiliated if it goes tits up.

I reckon he'll be back in with a large majority but on a seriously low turnout.

If people want to support the bin man and give the Labour party a big boost then that's up to them..

If I were a Labour supporter in Clacton I'd be pretty annoyed they're not standing a candidate. It may be a big if, or not, but if Farage gets back in and is cleared by the Standards Committee they've missed a chance to oust him and he's there till the next GE.

Why should any party indulge in some attention seeking desperate stunt by Farage ?

Even Badenoch look flustered when asked why the Tories were not standing a candidate..She's usually so full of herself.

.

however if they really thought they had a good chance to topple him they would have put up a top candidate to fight him. a bit of a last second decision before its too late. a bit like my ebay buying.

I've given a reason to stand candidates, it's a chance to displace Farage - they may not get another before a GE.
It may be a stunt for Farage but it could well backfire if he loses his seat, which he won't if nobody opposed him.

He won’t lose the seat, Clacton is full of retirees who tend to back Reform, what he has done is dug a hole for himself putting the spotlight on himself. He should have sat back waited for the outcome of judgement which might mean they won’t disqualify him and a election wouldn’t be necessary.

He definitely won't lose the seat if there's no opposition.
It's not really any more of a stunt as the guy standing down in Makerfield, or the un-challenged crowning of a PM who wasn't even an MP 3 weeks ago.
Democracy in action.

Maker field is history now, done and dusted.
All Farage is doing is putting Reform under more scrutiny from where their funding comes from, the MSM are now looking into where all the donations come from. As I said he should have kept his head ‘under the parapet’ but because he is such an attention seeking narcissistic person he can’t.

And yet he'll still get re-elected unopposed, so his popularity is undiminished.
I'm old school, and if the main parties can't be bothered to stand then they're killing democracy. What do they gain by not standing?

Donations to the Labour party,Jamie...the media are digging up some very interesting stuff on them,just thought I'd warn you...

CAN you provide further info on this although nothing compared to the £12 million by a crypto millionaire who doesn’t even want to be known by his U.K. name so much for being patriotic. Police are also investigating donations worth £500,000 made to Reform UK by the mother of a convicted fraudster and ally of Nigel Farage.
Farage has shot himself in the foot instead of waiting to hear the outcome of Parliamentary Commission he jumped the gun putting himself and Reform the subject of the MSM.

Who gives a flying f#@k.

And yet, despite the investigation and allegations Labour and the Tory's are frightened to take him in at the ballot box. Says as much about the m as it does Farage don't you think?
Why are they robbing the Clacton electorate of democracy?

No point why spend their resources time and effort as they will the next if he is found guilty and another by election is called.
All Farage had to do was wait until after the enquiry but he jumped the gun and has opened a can of worms for himself and Reform with the MSM now looking into more of Reforms finances. All he has done has removed the focus of Burnham in his quest to become PM.

They're both scared of losing more like.
There was no problem with the manufactured Makerfield election, or the fact that a greater expense will occur with the Manchester Mayoral election - you know the reason Starmer and the Labour NEC refused Butnham permission to stand in citing what a great job he was doing in Manchester, and the extra costs of a Mayoral election. Another example of Starmer's indecisiveness and 2 tier politics I suppose?

What about the extra costs for the 80 Reform councillors who have resigned, been sacked, changed parties etc since May 2025 ?

That's got nothing to do with Starmer saying he couldn't stand because it was too expensive then letting him stand in a manufactured election partly because of the cost of the Mayoral election then changing his mind - have the Mayoral election costs been reduced? So extra cost of the Makerfield manufactured election plus extra cost of Mayoral election is borne by the taxpayers to appease panicking Labour MPs - it was a shame election, then they have the gall to call Farage's manufactured election a stunt. It's so far circle and undemocratic they refuse to stand a candidate - and if you believe that you've been in the sun too long.

Forget about the disastrous May by-elections for Labour and the undemocratic way they placed Burnham to power? You're having a laugh!!

Is’nt the Farage election manufactured, the saying let sleeping dogs lie comes to mind, he should stand up and be like a man and accept if there is any ‘punishment’ from the Parliamentary Committee. Instead he has created a circus making U.K. politics a joke with the likes of Count Binface standing even being featured on TV in The States.
The whole situation has been of his own making it a distraction from real politics.

Let’s look forward and put last years elections behind us, it wasn’t unexpected, let’s see how the Reform Councils perform, judging by the number of resignations many can’t hack it.

No, othe Lib Lab Con collective are in panic mode and squealing like piglets complaing about being knee deep in shit in the sty ….which was all Thor own work.

Do you do these broadcasts for the Party voluntarily or do they send you a piss poor script on repetition…..because you’re like a woodpecker without a beak and a headache.