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DAMESATHOME@GMAIL.COM
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Tuesday 10 April 2012

LUDO 'FINGERS' DEZ

Ludo, The Dame's Nephew fingers....
........Dez O'Neil! 
The Dame's utterly useless nephew, Ludovic, has been foisted upon her by worried parents with the words, 'Dame, can you find the boy a stimulating job not just using him to pick up your laundry and chauffeur you to Damien Thirst’s Retrospective at the Tate Modern?'
So pity swelling her ample bosom the Dame set Ludovic with the task of taking a peek at our councillors 'interests' and crosschecking with Companies House.                    
She completely revised her opinion of the lad when he reported back with some quite shocking news. According to dear Ludo, under the Localism Bill it is a criminal offence not to update your interests, but certain of our councillors seem to think that being members of the Rotten Borough they are exempted. And she was equally surprised to find that many councillors have 'businesses' but no business-not dissimilar to Pooter Cockell's Abingdon Cockell!

Here are a few highlights with information taken from company check, which uses Companies House data, so don't blame any errors on the Dame's boy

Cllr Palmer states Councilperson as his business, but this has no internet presence apart from his  basic off-the-shelf website, and no accounts have been tabled.

Cllr Read declares he has two businesses: Financial Academic Derivatives Inc which is worth £zero; the other Finac Group is dormant.

Cllr Paget-Brown claims two businesses, Pelham Research and UKEN Ltd; neither have any record at Companies House whatever.

The idiotic Cllr Betsy Campbell has no visible means of support, but states that she is a Board member of KCTMO, which is certainly not the case.

Cllr Rock FM declares his charming-sounding Socially Conscious Capital, but the dear thing only had £1,126 funds in it at last count.

Cllr Moylan's three businesses are all registered abroad, which certainly fostered our curiosity and the Dame has sent her intern over to Ireland to investigate further.

Cllr P Warrick has two businesses, Vincomida Ltd and Shareholder Travel Ltd; both have £zero assets.

Cllr T Buxton has Pembridge Properties Ltd, with quite a handsome bank balance.

Another one with his own v profitable business is the mysterious Cllr Mackover! Here’s one to watch, and we never thought we’d say that of him.

Most bizarrely,Pooter Cockell still says he is Commissioner at the Audit Commission, which no longer exists. No mention of his chairmanship of the LGA, which is really very naughty indeed.

Amazingly, a few of the Councillors have actual daytime jobs!

But the worst miscreant of all is Labour’s Cllr O’Neill. He hasn’t updated his Interests since 2007, which is surprising since he is the only one who actually does business direct with the Council through his Westway Project, and makes a fair few quid out of it too. Ludovic sniffed about, and tells me his business has now changed its name and is at times promoted by O’Neill at meetings where he doesn't declare an interest, and is very much favoured for contracts by his friend Paget-Brown. Surely this murky situation is precisely what the transparency rules are there to avoid?  It’s about time the Labour leadership dealt with this person as it all stinks to high heaven.



13 comments:

  1. I always knew the Dame was very well connected

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  2. This is totally disgraceful. Are they really all breaking the law? Who are these people?

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  3. Given their 'relaxed' attitude to the rules re Lamont, this is no surprise really 20.38. They make em, they break em.

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  4. Colville trader11 April 2012 at 10:37

    Of all these discrepancies/criminal offences I am most surprised that Cockell has been so careless, especially so soon after the Lamont fiasco.

    From what Colville residents and business owners say, little surprises me about O'Neill, except that he is supposed to be a Labour Party member! He sits on committees that could help his business, and ignores the needs of those who elected him.

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  5. Dear Dame, just one minor correction that your Ludo has misunderstood.

    The Localism Bill is a bill no more, it is the LOCALISM ACT.

    This is why it is now a criminal offence not to update your Members' Interests. Simply updating them is frankly not enough; the offence has still been committed.

    I imagine someone will report this to Mr Pickles?

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  6. How silly of Tory Chief Whip Ahern not to ensure that all his colleagues' interests are up to date. Now Cllr. Cockell can't prosecute Cllr O'Neill in revenge for the Labour Standards complaints against himself and Cllr. Paget-Brown, given that even his own register of interests is now (perhaps criminally) out of date!

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  7. Oh dear Blow Fly, you are absolutely correct. Ahern has really missed a trick here.

    Imagine Cockell of all people, omitting to update his Register of Interests!

    Either they have all truly forgotten (which is not good enough), or they think it doesn't matter - which is worse!

    Either way, a bunch of incompetents, and they're giving us a good laugh this morning at their expense.

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  8. Well done, Dame, for putting Ludo to work so enterprisingly.
    Just goes to prove that sunlight is the best disinfectant.

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  9. Here is the link if anyone would like to comment to the Council about 'transparency'. Now THIS could be interesting!

    http://www.rbkc.gov.uk/councilanddemocracy/transparencyinthecouncil.aspx

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  10. “Council business belongs out in the open, where residents can keep a close eye.”

    Council Leader, Cllr Sir Merrick Cockell.

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  11. Councillor O'Neill has let the Opposition and residents down very badly.
    Labour would have been in a strong position to call a vote of "no confidence" in Cockell (citing criminality (Localism Act), poor judgement (Lamont), etc) but will be reluctant/unable to do so now that one of their own is so tarnished.

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  12. Colville Trader11 April 2012 at 18:04

    For clarity, do I have this right?
    E Campbell, Cockell and O'Neill are in flagrant breach of the Localism Act, which is now a criminal offence.

    Palmer, Read and Warrick have businesses without any business.

    Paget-Brown and Moylan have businesses probably registered abroad, and Feilding-Mellen runs a flash car and life on £1,200.

    Transparency my eye!

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  13. I think the Dame should bring the matter to the attention of the police. Maybe we would have a fourth Conservative councillor resigning. No chance of him going unless he is pushed. He 'needs' the money.

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