Andy Coulson 'broke' Commons pass rules by failing to declare NI payments

[oldironside]

Andy Coulson appears to have broken House of Commons rules by failing to declare payments and benefits he received from News International while holding a parliamentary pass sponsored by David Cameron.

Registers held in the Commons archive, seen by the Guardian, reveal that in September 2007 – three months after Coulson was employed by Cameron's office – the former News of the World editor failed to declare the health insurance, company car and severance payments he was receiving from his old employers.

The records also show that for at least two months after he resigned from his position as No 10's head of communications in January this year, Coulson continued to hold a parliamentary pass, sponsored by Downing Street, which allowed him access to parliament as a No 10 employee.

That will raise new questions about whether Coulson – who Cameron has admitted seeing on a social basis since his resignation – continued to perform an unofficial role for the Tories after he had left.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/aug/24/andy-coulson-news-international-payments

This continual drip of new information must be agony for Cameron. But, if the story is true and Coulson was continuing to work for the Tories in an unofficial capacity after he'd resigned, Cameron must go. He will have lost all credibility.

[non sociopath skin]

1. Not so sure.

If any other party and any other organisation was concerned, yes.

But the right-wing press (which is most of it) will look after their own.

And I fear folks will be hoodwinked again.

The Skin

[dipsydoodle]

2. Headline cracks me up

given that NI as an acronym normally has a totally different connotation here in the UK.

One of the cousins posted this in LBN and it was ignored in terms of responses. It amuses me that over there they don't seem to grasp that free use of the Guardian online is helping sink the company but hopefully they'll keep up the good work :

Guardian Loses Readers Even After Ousting Murdoch Tabloid : http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-08-17/guardian-loses-readers-even-after-bringing-down-murdoch-tabloid.html

Its also noticeable in terms of graft that The Grauniad made no reference to either :

Prisoners painted room for ex-minister Jacqui Smith : http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-14648111

or the manner in which Mandleson is able to buy an £8 million mansion : http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2028356/Lord-Mandelsons-8m-mansion-Questions-Labour-ministers-wealth.html

[non sociopath skin]

3. Er ...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2011/aug/24/pass-notes-jacqui-smith

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2011/aug/24/prison-inmates-painting-jacqui-smith

Admittedly, nothing on His Satanic Majesty's new pad but the classic use of expressions like "a source" and "understood" in the Wail report suggests this may not be much of a story - as yet, anyway.

The Skin

[dipsydoodle]

4. I'd searched but couldn't find

on reflection could've been I spelt her name Jackie.