Nov 1999 Selection of Candidates. The ugly faces of Money and Ethics were raised in the selection of Candidates for the London Mayoral Election. There was a democratic process, however CCHQ allowed the Candidates to spend £80,000 each in their campaigns. Jeffrey Archer spent that on his campaign. This is an obscene amount of money to be spent on an internal Party election and was the forerunner of even larger amounts being spent on future elections. Once again money talks in the Conservative Party. Sensible limits should be imposed for each candidate but you will not find that in the Party Constitution. Archer was a controversial Candidate with a dubious background. CCHQ responsibility is to conduct due diligence. Did they, and if not why not? Why was Archer not referred to the Ethics Committee? Many people thought he should not have been allowed to be the Candidate. Were lessons learnt?
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