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Diane Abbott today attacked three Labour rivals for Mayor of London as “beholden to tycoons” after they accepted campaign donations worth tens of thousands of pounds from property firms.
The left-winger claimed that a would-be mayor taking gifts from property developers was "incompatible" with their duty to Londoners.
Dame Tessa Jowell, David Lammy, and Sadiq Khan have all received money from individuals and companies that critics say could benefit from decisions taken by a future mayor, such as planning consents and the release of new land to build on.
Mr Lammy has declared donations totalling £74,500 so far in 2015 alone, including £15,000 from developer Galliard Holdings, £4,000 from Beauchamp Estates Ltd, and a personal donation of £5,000 from Killian Hurley, chief executive of Mount Anvil.
Dame Tessa has declared a total of £51,500 in donations in 2015, including £11,500 from Canary Wharf Ltd and £5,000 from Paul Myners, the former City Minister who is a past chairman of Land Securities.
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Mr Khan received donations of £37,750 during 2015, including £15,000 from DCD Properties Ltd. The firm also gave £5,000 last year.
Ms Abbott said property firms were guilty of “grabbing” land for luxury developments marketed to foreign investors, while resisting building social housing and effectively “social cleansing”.
She said lobbying property firms was behind calls to build on green belt land.
“An aspirant Mayor of London taking money from property developers is completely incompatible with their duty to ordinary Londoners.
“I would never take money from property developers. How could Londoners trust a would-be Mayor financially beholden to tycoons responsible for pricing ordinary Londoners out of London?”
Fellow Labour hopeful Christian Wolmar joined the attack saying: “How can they say they will drive a hard bargain with developers while taking money from them?”
Mr Hurley told Property Week that he donated because Mr Lammy “engaged early, consulting on his vision to ensure that everyone shares in London’s success”.
Galliard chief executive Stephen Conway told the magazine: “From a poor immigrant background, we found the David Lammy story compelling.”
Electoral Commission records shw Mr Lammy has pulled in the most donations so far, with £74,500 so far this year alone.
Mr Lammy defended his donations, saying: “I’m very pleased to have Londoners from all backgrounds and all different professions backing my campaign for Mayor.”
He said his policies would be “tougher in securing a better deal from London developers”, including more affordable homes.
Mr Khan’s spokesman said all donations were declared and added: “Our housing policy is robust and backed by leading housing experts.” These included banning “poor doors” on developments.
A spokesman for Dame Tessa said: “All donations are recorded and published in accordance with the rules.”
David Lammy (Lab) | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Value | Accepted date | Donor name | Donor status | Donation type |
£5,000 | 09/04/15 | Mr Killian Hurley | Individual | Cash |
£15,000 | 20/03/15 | Galliard Holdings Limited | Company | Cash |
£2,000 | 20/03/15 | Beauchamp Estates Limited | Company | Cash |
£2,000 | 20/03/15 | Beauchamp Estates Limited | Company | Cash |
Total donations so far in 2015 - £74,500
Dame Tessa Jowell (Lab) | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
£11,500 | 28/06/15 | Canary Wharf Ltd | Company | Cash |
Total donations so far in 2015 - £51,500
Sadiq Khan (Lab) | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
£10,000 | 05/06/15 | DCD Properties Ltd | Company | Cash |
£5,000 | 26/03/15 | DCD Properties Ltd | Company | Cash |
Total donations so far in 2015 - £37.750
The following reported zero donations to the Electoral Commission:
Diane Abbott (Lab)
Christian Wolmar (Lab)
Andrew Boff (Con)
Zac Goldsmith (Con)
Syed Kamal (Con)
Gareth Thomas (Lab)
Source: Electoral Commission