Lord Ashcroft
Issue- Guardian and Times reports on Lord Ashcroft and William Hague.
Key points
- Commenting on today's revelations, Douglas Alexander said:
"These revelations shift the focus of the Ashcroft saga firmly to William Hague's door.
"These letters show that [Hague] promised both the then Prime Minister and the Political Honours Scrutiny Committee that Lord Ashcroft would become resident for tax purposes and pay, in William Hague's own words to the Prime Minister, 'tens of millions a year in tax'.
"But [on Monday] it was revealed that Michael Ashcroft was a non-dom and has therefore never fulfilled William Hague's promise to become resident and pay tens of millions a year in tax'.
"William Hague has repeatedly told the public that Lord Ashcroft complied with the commitments that he gave'. Given the terms of William Hague's letter to the then Prime Minister on 23 May 1999 the question he must now answer is did he repeatedly mislead the British public or was he repeatedly misled by Michael Ashcroft?
"The truth about this issue has been concealed for a decade. William Hague must now end this week's silence and answer what he knew about Michael Ashcroft's status and when.
"The evasion and obfuscation must now end."
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