Yo, Blair !
July 18, 2006
President Putin checks
his microphone.
Bush: Yo, Blair. How are you doing?
Blair: I’m just…
Bush: You’re leaving?
Blair: No, no, no not yet. On this trade thingy …[inaudible]
Bush: Yeah, I told that to the man.
Blair: Are you planning to say that here or not?
Bush: If you want me to.
Full transcript in the comments
Corrupt leader slammed at G8
July 17, 2006
The Russian president used a televised press conference yesterday morning to take a 
swipe at Britain’s increasingly beleaguered premier.
Asked by Alec Russell, The Daily Telegraph’s Washington correspondent, about British criticism of Russia’s human rights record, he replied: “There are also other questions, questions let’s say about the fight against corruption. We would be interested in hearing your experience, including how it applies to Lord Levy.”
More in the pipeline ?
July 16, 2006
The British government likes to lecture other countries on good governance and the importance of stamping out corruption.
The department responsible for these sermons is the same Cabinet Office (of Ruth Turner, John McTernan and Jonathan Powell) under investigation by the Specialist Crimes Directorate.
Two documents released under the FOIA by the Cabinet Office in January demonstrate how seriously this government takes the fight against corruption.
http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/foi/pdf/money_laundering.pdf
http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/foi/pdf/corruption_grp.pdf
For those too sensible to read government documents on a summer Sunday afternoon, they express the importance of Know Your Customer rules when dealing with Politically Exposed Persons and how the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 should be used to prevent benefit accruing from political corruption.
I wonder if D.A.C Yates has referred his findings to the Asset Recovery Agency which has, “unique powers to take civil recovery action or tax the proceeds of crime” ?
“17.Once a criminal investigation has started, and where there is reasonable cause to believe that the alleged offender has benefited from his criminal conduct…,the investigating body may apply for a restraining order to be served in order to protect assets which may subsequently be required to satisfy a confiscation order by a court.”
