CPS accused of meddling in election as Tory is charged
ANGRY Conservatives have accused the Crown Prosecution Service of trying to interfere in the General Election by charging a Tory candidate with electoral fraud less than a week before polling day.
The CPS charged Craig Mackinlay, who defeated Ukip’s former leader Nigel Farage in the South Thanet seat in 2015, with offences under the Representation of the People Act that relate to rules on campaign spending limits.
If convicted, Mr Mackinlay faces a fine or up to a year in prison and could be forced to quit Parliament, assuming he is re-elected in the Kent marginal seat next week.
Any court case against Mr Mackinlay (and two of his constituency party workers) could see Nick Timothy, chief of staff to Theresa May, give evidence since his visit to the constituency during Mr Mackinlay’s 2015 campaign is a key issue.
The CPS came under fire for announcing its decision yesterday, just six days before polling, despite admitting that it could have delayed the charges – under a “statutory time limit” – to June 11, three days after the vote.
Last month, the CPS said it had considered files from 14 other police forces relating to campaign spending breaches but had decided not to bring charges against any other Conservative MPS or officials.
One influential Tory who is standing as a parliamentary candidate said: “This is a breathtaking intervention by the CPS a week before [polling day]. If they did it after the election he would have the chance to clear his name from the same position that he was before the General Election...to charge him [now] will potentially influence the outcome of the democratic process in his seat. A charge is not a conviction in any way – it is a case to answer.”
Mr Mackinlay, 50, faces two counts of making false election expense claims. Nathan Gray, 28, faces three charges of making false claims, while Marion Little, 62, faces five charges of assisting Mr Mackinlay and Mr Gray with the claims.
The decision to charge was taken by Nick Vamos, the CPS’S head of specialist crime, after agreeing with Alison Saunders, the Director of Public Prosecutions, that there was a “realistic prospect of conviction”, according to the CPS’S code.
Mr Mackinlay, Mr Gray, his agent at the 2015 election, and Ms Little, a party official, are now due to appear at Westminster magistrates’ court on July 4. Last night, Mrs May stood by Mr Mackinlay. “The Conservative party continues to believe that these allegations are unfounded. Craig Mackinlay is innocent until proven guilty and he remains our candidate,” she said. Mr Mackinlay was “confident” of being acquitted because he had acted honestly and “acted upon advice throughout”. He added: “Clearly this is a shocking decision by the CPS, given that I’ve done nothing wrong and I am confident that this will be made very clear as the matter progresses.”
A South Thanet Conservative Association spokesman was “convinced there are no grounds for these charges and that he [Mr Mackinlay] will be completely exonerated”. Neither Ms Little nor Mr Gray would comment.
Mr Farage, who was beaten into second place by 2,812 votes back in 2015, said the seat will now be a “straight fight” between Ukip and Labour. The CPS said the decision to press charges came after prosecutors received evidence from Kent Police in April concerning allegations relating to Conservative Party expenditure during the 2015 election campaign. Sources said prosecutors made their decision as soon as they could and did not allow the election date to affect the timing of any announcement. A CPS spokesman said it was “entirely independent in its decision-making” and conclusions are reached solely in accordance with its Code for Crown Prosecutors.
The inquiry, which spans multiple constituencies, centres on claims that expenses relating to the bus loads of Tory campaign activists sent to key seats were wrongly reported as part of the party’s national spending rather than in the candidates’ local returns. Emails disclosed by Channel 4 News last year suggest Ms Little had organised South Thanet “Stop Farage” events. She allegedly ran a “hit squad” of staffers who had played a key role in fighting three by-elections in 2014 at Newark, Clacton and Rochester. Channel 4 News reported that 770 nights of hotel stays were booked in Ms Little’s name or using her home address and were not declared as part of the by-election spends.
‘Clearly this is a shocking decision by the CPS, given that I’ve done nothing wrong’