COUNCILLOR BLACKMAN'S COMPUTER (No. 2)

EDM number 1415 in 1994-95, proposed by Ken Livingstone on 14/07/1995.

That this House notes with disgust that further examination of the files in Councillor Blackman's computer reveal him to be at the centre of a campaign to prevent the exposure of corruption by his administration in the allocation of grants to local community organisations including the attempt to entrap Labour Councillor John Duffy by setting up and bugging a conversation in Councillor Duffy's own home, the tape of which was then transcribed by Brent Council staff, paid for by the council tax payer, on to his computer; further notes that this transcript was then used to try to intimidate Councillor Duffy into dropping his investigation into the allocation of ú70,000 worth of council grants paid to Mr Brendan Mulkere, administrator of the Brent Irish Centre, in exchange for his support for the Conservative Party at the 1994 council elections; and finally, noting that at the same time as this bugging exercise was conducted, Councillor Duffy and others were subject to a succession of threatening letters and phone calls, hopes that the police will investigate these related events.

This motion has been signed by a total of 23 MPs.