The Sunday Times - Britain

March 27, 2005

Labour 'infiltrating meetings'
David Cracknell and Andrew Porter


THE Tories claimed yesterday that Labour was running a covert dirty tricks campaign known as Operation Blackwatch to undermine them in the run-up to the general election.

Liam Fox, the party co-chairman, and other senior officials said they believed that Labour was infiltrating right-wing Conservative groups and taping meetings to bring down their MPs.

The allegations came after the resignation last week of Howard Flight, a Tory deputy chairman and envoy to the City, who was taped at a private meeting of a Thatcherite group suggesting that the party was hiding the true extent of its spending "cuts".

A Labour spokesman last night repeatedly refused to deny that the Labour party taped meetings, simply saying: "This is getting away from the substance of what was said, which is the real story." John Reid, the health secretary, said that "to the best of his knowledge" nobody from Labour had been involved in taping Flight.

The Tory claims of a concerted dirty tricks operation — which one official claimed that, if true, would have echoes of the Watergate buggings in America — came after a series of indiscreet comments have been leaked in recent months.

Fox, Oliver Letwin, the shadow chancellor, Gerald Howarth, a defence spokesman, and John Redwood, the deregulation spokesman, have also seen their comments at private meetings leaked. Fox said yesterday: "There seems to be a pattern and given the way new Labour operates that would be no surprise."

Referring to the alleged Operation Blackwatch, he added: "The party that has so little regard for convention and truth will stop at nothing to stay in office. There is a growing sense that there is nothing they won't do or say to save their skins and that new Labour is rotten to the core."

A senior Tory official said it was believed that Labour activists might have joined Tory groups some time ago and then acted as sleepers so that they could gain access to private lectures and meetings. "They are targeting ideological private groupings like the Conservative Way Forward and Conservative Future. We believe that people may have joined these groups, maybe for a couple of years, and it is now paying dividends."

The official added: "If they are prepared to tape things, they are probably prepared to go through rubbish bins. Where is the dividing line between this sort of thing and Richard Nixon taping things?"

Town: peter.franzen@community-action.com

Peter...you really should get out more.

This is not the Cold War, and you are not subject to some leftist conspiracy.

In any case, even if it is true, I don't think that Labour would bother listening in on the CAP. So why worry? That is unless, you might have some Tory sympathies? Surely not...

(PS: I am NOT a supporter of the government or new Labour. I won't be voting for them come the election. But neither am I in favour of opportunistic NIMBY politics. So I shan't be voting CAP either!)

Peter

I find it rich that you are complaining about infiltration when this seems to be a CAP tactic. Don Hodkinson was a member of the Labour Party for two years when he was schooled in the workings of the Council but failed to be accepted as a candidate. He then turned ot the CAP. Is this not ifiltration?

Pat

YOU STATE THAT WHEN DON HODGKINSON WAS A MEMBER OF THE LABOUR PARTY HE WAS "SCHOOLED IN THE WORKINGS OF THE COUNCIL"
WHAT EVIDENCE DO YOU HAVE TO SUPPORT YOUR UNSUBSTANTIATED ALLEGATION?
I REITERATE THAT, UNLIKE NEW LABOUR, THE COMMUNITY ACTION PARTY DO NOT HAVE A COVERT POLICY OF INFILTRATING AND CONTROLLING COMMUNITY GROUPS AND ASSOCIATIONS.
WE ARE GENUINE COMMUNITY ACTIVISTS FIRST AND FOREMOST AND HAVE ONLY BECOME INVOLVED IN LOCAL POLITICS TO FURTHER THE BEST INTERESTS OF OUR LOCAL COMMUNITIES.
IF YOU WOULD CARE TO EMAIL ME YOUR ADDRESS I WILL BE PLEASED TO SEND YOU A HARD COPY OF NEW LABOURS INFAMOUS INFILTRATION POLICY DOCUMENT.

Town: peter.franzen@community-action.com

Peter,
I will substantiate the allegation. As with all prospective councillors Don Hodkinson was mentored by a sitting concillor and attended meetings to which the public are excluded and generally shown what was expected of a councillor.
Pat

Hi Pat

I am pleased to read your statement "Peter,
I will substantiate the allegation."

When can we expect you to do that?

Town: peter.franzen@community-action.com