HEDGE FUNDS GIVE CONSERVATIVES OVER £50 MILLION
- Latest figures from the Electoral Commission reveal that in the last quarter (Q3 2014) hedge funds gave the Tories £1.34 million in donations, which means donations from the hedge fund industry to the Conservative Party now total £51.1 million.
- Hedge funds were given a tax cut worth £145 million by George Osborne in 2013.
- Analysis of Conservative Party donations shows that almost £3 million of donations in the last quarter came from donors who have attended exclusive private dinners with David Cameron and other senior Ministers, taking the total to £7.7 million from dinner donors in 2014.
Jonathan Ashworth MP, Labour’s Shadow Cabinet Office Minister said:
“David Cameron’s Tories are the party for a privileged few.
“The Tory election campaign will be funded by those who dine exclusively at the Prime Minister’s top table and a select few in the hedge fund industry.
“David Cameron’s hedge fund backers and millionaires have been given tax breaks while hardworking families are struggling to make ends meet.
“The Tories are standing up for those at the top at the expense of working people across the country. Whether putting private profit before patient care in the NHS or siding with the energy industry over consumers struggling with the cost-of-living crisis, David Cameron stands up for the wrong people.”
Background on hedge fund donations
- The Conservative Party relies heavily for its funding on individuals and companies associated with asset management and hedge funds.
- According to Electoral Commission figures for the most recent quarter alone, Q3 2014, hedge fund donors have given £1.34 million either in their own names or through their companies.
JON ASHWORTH
Leicester South MP and Shadow Cabinet Minister
