Election quango biased, says Vote Leave donor

PETER CRUDDAS, the former Conservative Party treasurer, has called for an independent review of the UK’s electoral watchdog after accusing the “scandalous” organisation of being biased.

Speaking to The Sunday Telegraph, the City tycoon accused the Electoral Commission of being too political and not fit for purpose following the High Court’s ruling that it “misinterpreted” EU referendum spending rules surrounding donations from Vote Leave.

“We need an independent review of the Electoral Commission to see if they’re fit for purpose. I don’t see how [it] can carry on when it’s biased against the Brexiteers,” said Cruddas, a major donor to the Vote Leave campaign.

“It should not be politically aligned, and I think it’s become too political. How can it give an official campaign group advice that is deemed by the High Court to be incorrect? It’s scandalous. Someone needs to sort it out for the future democratic process of this country.”

Earlier this year the elections quango accused Vote Leave of breaking electoral law during the EU referendum after it found “significant evidence” of joint working between the body and BeLeave, a smaller campaign group. The High Court agreed with the July findings, but said the watchdog had misunderstood the law.

An Electoral Commission spokesman said that “transparency and independence are central to our decisionmaking process” and that the organisation goes to great lengths to ensure “that any commissioners with a conflict of interest recuse themselves from decisions that are taken”.

Mr Cruddas donated £900,000 to Vote Leave. He made a fortune after setting up CMC Markets in 1989. Interview: Business, page 4