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Cash for Peerages; several nominees for life peerages (nominated by Tony Blair), were rejected by the House of Lords Appointments Commission. It was later revealed they had loaned large amounts of money to the Labour Party, apparently at the suggestion of fundraiser Lord Levy. It was reported that the peerages were a quid pro quo for the loans, and the incident was referred to the Police. Loans are not subject to reporting requirements to the Electoral Commission in the same way that donations are. However, party Treasurer Jack Dromey, stated publicly that neither he nor Labour's National Executive Committee chairman had knowledge of the loans and had only become aware when he read about it in the newspapers. Dromey announced his own investigation and called on the Electoral Commission to investigate the issue of political parties taking out loans from non-commercial sources. Dromey had intended to reveal his inquiry later last week, but having heard that Tony Blair intended to announce an inquiry the following day, toured television studios announcing his inquiry, fearing a Downing Street smear. Blair responded in panic, saying that he wanted to shake up the honours system and improve the rules covering party funding.

It all began to look a little shaky for Blair, rapidly diving in the polls. Feverish reports in the press suggested that he seemed to be about to sing his swan song. I can't honestly remember why I used Waterhouse's image of Tennyson's Lady of Shalott, but I think it was something to do with a pervasive feeling of Blair being up "Shitte Creeke" without ye paddle and of someone drifting off to death because of succumbing to temptation (money in Blair's case). An opportunistic knight in rusty armour, Gordon Brown, looks on from the bank, rather pleased.

The Guardian; Monday 20/3/06

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