Gordon Brown and transparency

The news that "Opposition MPs have accused some ministers - including Lord Mandelson - of concealing their financial interests behind so-called blind trusts." hardly caused me great surprise. The BBC story, as it is an anti-Labour Minister story, starts with the defence and waits before the charges are reproduced, presumably hoping readers will have read the headline and the defence and moved on. This is a shame because this extract is quite damning (my emphasis):

"Asked about the Business Secretary's interests, Mr Brown's spokesman said: "The whole point is that Lord Mandelson doesn't know what they are and therefore it doesn't affect his decisions as a minister."

The Cabinet Office has acknowledged that the ministerial code was changed under Gordon Brown's premiership to take out all references to blind trusts.

Earlier versions had stated: "It should also be remembered that even with a trust the minister could be assumed to know the contents of the portfolio for at least a period after its creation, so the protection a trust offers against conflict of interest is not complete." "

Comments?


The BBCdo also remind us of this:

"Tony Blair, used a blind trust. However, it sparked controversy in 2002 when it emerged that his wife Cherie used money from it to buy two flats in Bristol."