Labour accused of “spiteful” dirty tricks
Labour has been accused of mounting a “spiteful dirty tricks” campaign against Conservative Party leader Michael Howard.
Operating under the new Freedom of Information Act, the party reportedly asked gay activists, MPs and the public to comb the archives at Whitehall for material to discredit Mr Howard, according to a memo headed “FOI questions for Michael Howard” leaked to The London Evening Standard.
Ahead of the general election, expected in May, gay activists were being asked to demand the publication of letters and papers written by Mr Howard about Section 28, a law that banned the promotion of homosexuality in schools.
Former Labour minister, Peter Kilfoyle, was asked to seek the release of documents over the early release of two drug dealers on the recommendation of a trial judge.
Mr Howard is alleged to have helped a family member with involvement with drugs during his time as Home Secretary in John Major’s government.
Questions have been also submitted over claims Mr Howard fast-tracked a replacement passport for the journalist Petronella Wyatt.
And Labour is also trying to resurrect the row over Mr Howard’s sacking of Derek Lewis as prisons’ chief.
The latest row comes after Labour was rebuked for running a series of poster campaigns against Mr Howard, which some adjudged anti-Semitic.
One poster showed Mr Howard – a Jewish immigrant – swinging a pocket watch on a chain, which critics said was based on the Jewish moneylender in The Merchant of Venice or the Oliver Twist character, Fagin. Labour stressed the posters were “anti-Conservative”, not anti-Semitic.
Labour has since adopted the slogan “Britain forward not back” this week, and said they would be focussing on Mr Howard’s past record.
Liam Fox, the Conservative Party Co-chairman, accused Tony Blair of hypocrisy in adopting a “holier than thou” stance on negative campaigning.
In 1997, Mr Blair said policy not personality was the key issue for him at election time.
But Dr Fox said Labour was planning the “nastiest, most vicious, personalised and abusive election campaign that we have ever seen”.
In contrast, the Conservatives said they were planning a “positive” campaign detailing policies on crime, asylum, tax and cleaner hospitals.
