|
(Continued from overleaf)
Also on 28 October 1994: The Guardian publishes an article alleging for the last time that Tim Smith had taken cash
from the lobbyist Ian Greer.
The article, by political correspondent Stephen Bates, listed the various allegations against Conservative ministers. At the end of his piece Bates repeated the Guardian's allegation that Tim Smith had taken cash from Greer. Bates stated:
Tim Smith
The allegations: That Mr Smith, the Northern Ireland minister, accepted cash from
Mohammed Al-Fayed via Ian Greer
Associates, to ask questions helpful to Mr Al-Fayed during the House of Fraser battle with Lonhro. The result: Mr
Smith admitted he had taken money to Sir Robin Butler, the Cabinet Secretary, sometime between October 3 and
October 18. He resigned the day after the Guardian broke the story on October 21. John Major said: 'It was clearly
wrong and in these circumstances I accept your resignation.'
Bates's article provides further proof that the Guardian had
no knowledge at this stage that Smith had resigned because he had taken cash from
Fayed, rather than Greer. However, this was the very last time that
The Guardian would name Ian Greer as Smith's paymaster.
-------------------------------------------------------------
29 October 1994: The Guardian publishes an article by David Hencke & political editor Michael White, focusing on Conservative MPs' links with professional parliamentary lobbying companies, in which they describe Ian Greer Associates as "the company at the centre of the Al-Fayed 'cash for questions' row."
-------------------------------------------------------------
3 November 1994: The Guardian publishes an article by Sarah Whitebloom entitled "Accountancy firms abandon 'cash-for questions' lobbyist", which begins by describing Ian Greer Associates as "the political lobbyists at the centre of the cash-for-questions row".
-------------------------------------------------------------
5 November 1994: The Guardian publishes a feature by Dave Hill on a forthcoming inquiry involving allegations against Westminster Council's Conservative Leader Lady Shirley Porter, in which Hill remarks that her deputy, Simon Milton, works for the parliamentary lobbyist Ian Greer, whose company "is at the centre of the current 'cash-for-questions' controversy".
-------------------------------------------------------------
22 November 1994: The Guardian carries a front-page story by David Hencke alleging that lobbyists Ian Greer Associates sought to undermine plans drawn up by the then Health Minister Brian Mawhinney to restrict poster tobacco advertising, by arranging meetings between other ministers and clients opposed to the scheme.
-------------------------------------------------------------
23 November 1994: The Guardian carries a front page story by David Hencke reporting calls from Labour MPs for the resignation of Keith Mans, the parliamentary private secretary to Health Secretary Virginia Bottomley, following allegations in the previous day's Guardian that Mans had colluded with lobbying company Ian Greer Associates against the former Heath Minister.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Also on 23 November 1994: The chairman of the Members' Interests Committee, Geoffrey Johnson Smith, writes to Fayed's emissary, LibDem MP Alex Carlile QC, requesting that he submit a finalised complaint against Neil Hamilton together with evidence of
Mohamed Al Fayed's 'cash for questions' allegations as reported in the
Guardian newspaper.
-------------------------------------------------------------
24 November 1994: The Guardian carries an article by David Hencke reporting Virginia Bottomley's defence of Keith Mans, following his denials of allegations in
The Guardian that he had offered support to a client of Ian Greer Associates, British Transport Advertising.
-------------------------------------------------------------
26 November 1994: The Guardian publishes an article stating for the first time that Tim Smith had resigned because he had taken cash from Mohamed
Al Fayed, as distinct to its previous stories alleging that Smith had
received bribes from the lobbyist Ian Greer. Most significantly the article contains no mention of
Ian Greer, despite The Guardian previously describing Greer as being "at the centre" of the controversy.
The story, by political reporter David Pallister, entitled 'Blackmail inquiry was started by unnamed informant', described a police inquiry into the attempt by Mohamed
Al Fayed to blackmail Prime Minister John Major into withdrawing the DTI report and granting him British citizenship upon pain of his making public corruption allegations against several ministers.
In the extract below Pallister refers to the earlier inquiry by Cabinet Secretary Sir Robin Butler. Pallister employs several tools of deception, such as misleading juxtaposition and omission, to create the false impression that
The Guardian's original 'cash for questions' allegations had been vindicated by Tim Smith's resignation. Pallister stated:
Sir Robin's summary of his investigation into allegations against several ministers was released on October 25 -- a
week after the Guardian first published its story about two MPs accepting cash-for-questions during the House of
Fraser battle with Lonhro…
Both MPs named in the Guardian, Tim Smith and later Neil Hamilton, resigned their junior posts in the
government. Mr Smith admitted taking cash from Mr Al-Fayed; Mr Hamilton denied the charge and is suing the
Guardian for libel.
The Guardian used similar omission and juxtaposition thereafter, resulting in journalists throughout the British media becoming totally confused as to even the most basic facts of the 'cash for questions' affair.
-------------------------------------------------------------
|
