A-lister Caroline Nokes, Tory candidate for Romsey & Southampton North at the next election, is in hot water after callously hijacking the charity Breast Cancer Care for her political gain; according to Labourhome writer Red Rooster.
Promising an unspecified “personal donation” to the registered charity for every completed response, Nokes has sent out thousands of these letters, branded with Breast Cancer Care’s logo and colour scheme. The letter also include Nokes’ legal imprint as a Conservative candidate and a pinked-up Conservative party logo.
Click this thumbnail for the leaflet’s full front page.
Romsey is a top Tory target seat and has attracted large amounts of funding from shadowy Toy donors, who will have funded this leaflet. Three individual named donors gave Romsey Tories over £15,000.00 between them but far more cash has come from companies.
Donors include:
Bearwood Corporate Services Ltd (MD Michael Ashcroft)
June 04 - £2,516.07
Nov 04 - £11,930.00
March 05 - £11,557.00
Smith Bradbeer & Co Ltd
Oct 04 - £2,000.00
Thornwood Investments Ltd
Oct 04 - £2,500.00
PGC Construction Ltd
Jan 06 - £5,000.00
So who are the people behind these massive donations? What was their role in the production of this leaflet? How much is Nokes promising to donate to Breast Cancer Care? Will it be her money or that of her secret backers? Is Breast Cancer Care endorsing Caroline Nokes or the Conservative Party?
Most of all, is it suitable for Nokes to remain a Conservative Party endorsed candidate after this fiasco?
And if taking advantage of a breast cancer charity isn’t enough to convince you Tories are evil, she named her daughter Tabitha.
editor[at]recessmonkey.com
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Purely hypothetical question but, my mother died of breast cancer at 48. If I was a Tory PPC (when hell freezes over) would it be wrong of me to do a survey like this? Would I be taking advantage or going for something close to my heart? If David Cameron put a leaflet and survey about Scope would you be accusing him of hijacking the charity?
Note, I’m not saying that Carline Noakes has, or is, in a situation like the hypothetical above. I’m just wondering where you would draw the line on a “hijack” accusation, or indeed if you even would?
dizzy said this on December 19th, 2007 at 8:54 am
The survey has zero questions about breast cancer in it. It’s an entirely political survey, with questions like ‘do you believe the government has used council tax as a stealth tax?’
If it was a genuine survey about breast cancer, it wouldn’t be quite so appalling (though you’d still have to deal with the recklessness of putting the charity in a very awkward position by using their logos). But the fact that she’s just used the issue as a way in to talk about Tory policies makes me want to vomit.
Red Rooster said this on December 19th, 2007 at 9:58 am
I would imagine that, given the rules against charities endorsing political parties, any charity would be very unhappy indeed about having its logo posted all over a party political leaflet. There’s nothing wrong with a candidate endorsing Breast Cancer Care (or any charity they support), but it would certainly be illegal for Breast Cancer Care to endorse a political party. The problem with sticking a charity’s logo on a party political leaflet is that it may appear to the general reader to be a charity leaflet rather than a political leaflet, and that it may appear to the general reader that Breast Cancer Care supports the Conservative Party.
I’m not suggesting that Breast Cancer Care have done anything wrong. I’d be surprised if they were happy about this. The main issue, I think, is the use of the logo and branding - there’s nothing wrong with a PPC putting out a leaflet saying “I support Breast Cancer Care and I will give them money if you fill in my form” (or, you know, going on sponsored walks or signing charity petitions or whatever).
It would be just as bad for David Cameron to do the same with Scope (and, to be fair to him, I don’t think he ever has).
Tom said this on December 19th, 2007 at 9:59 am
[…] Tory Caroline Nokes to say they will not accept any charitable donations from her after using their logo and branding for a Conservative Party […]
RecessMonkey » Blog Archive » Charity doesn’t want Tory’s money said this on December 19th, 2007 at 10:34 am
John Leech MP stuck out a leaflet - alongside his Christie Hospital Cancer Hoax - about women’s cancers which as I recall appeared to be endorsed by a number of charities. In the run up to the General Election that never was he stuck out a leaflet with a list of his various health activities, aimed at deflecting from his callous Christie campaign where his false claims - that the Hospital needed to be saved from closure - were even spread in hospital waiting rooms where chemo- and radio- therapy patients and their friends and relatives waited for treatment. Most of them NOT members of the electorate in the constituency.
Chris Paul said this on December 19th, 2007 at 10:45 am
[…] Tory Caroline Nokes, who used the charity Breast Cancer Care’s logo and branding for a Conservative Party leaflet, may need to go to Lord Ashcroft for a bit more cash after […]
RecessMonkey » Blog Archive » Nokes may pay for cancer dupe said this on December 19th, 2007 at 11:10 am
Smith Bradbeer is, in fact, a local employer - not a front organisation as far as Im aware
Matthew Cain said this on December 19th, 2007 at 1:17 pm
dizzy, is that the best you’ve got by way of an excuse, some ab hominem plea for pity? If you stole my branding and copyrighted material for the sake of your politics I’d sue you for all you’ve got
still fed up said this on December 19th, 2007 at 2:25 pm
What’s bad about the name Tabitha? One of my closest friends is called that!
Tim Roll-Pickering said this on December 19th, 2007 at 3:48 pm
Still fed up….you’d sue me for all you’ve got??
And that surely sums up the in “in it for myself” selfish antisocial nature which our government has been promoting in society for the last ten years.
But you carry on. There’s no need for you to work or try hard if there are enough people able to subsidise your selfish ways.
Fishcake said this on December 20th, 2007 at 12:11 am
“dizzy, is that the best you’ve got by way of an excuse, some ab hominem plea for pity?”
Errr I wasn;t making an excuse, I was asking a genuinely honestly question you supercillious prick. What is with you fucking politco wankers that everything has to be broken down into some sort of fucking excuse, or if someone doesn;t flail their arms around and bemoaing the outrageous injustice of it all they must be condoning something. It’s no fucking wonder people can’t be arsed to vote anymore when complete facicle tosser and cunts are playing these pathetic little games. I suggest you fuck off and die of cancer, prefably of the bone because it really hurts apparently.
dizzy said this on December 21st, 2007 at 12:43 pm
“dizzy, is that the best you’ve got by way of an excuse, some ab hominem plea for pity?”
It wasn’t an excuse, it was a genuine question of where the line is drawn you supercilious fucktard. That’s have the problem with this fucking world, twats like you who see someone and say “he’s X, and he’s not saying Y, therefore he must really think Z”. No wonder so few people vote when cunts like you can;t even see the difference between a genuine hypothetical question and turning into some sort of pathetic political point scoring match that no normal person give a flying fuck about. Frankly you can fuck off and die.
dizzy said this on December 21st, 2007 at 2:27 pm
I like to repeat myself for effect.
dizzy said this on December 21st, 2007 at 2:56 pm
I live in romsey and know nokes she is an exstemely nasty ruthless piece of work well suited to be a tory candidate
peter sowerby said this on January 1st, 2008 at 3:40 pm
[…] Tory Caroline Nokes, who used the charity Breast Cancer Care’s logo and branding for a Conservative Party leaflet, is under fire from the Southern Daily Echo over her continuing […]
RecessMonkey » Blog Archive » Nokes still silent over cancer scam said this on January 7th, 2008 at 12:53 pm
At the last election, Nokes arranged for a charming horse and cart to be conspicuously and dangerously parked outside the local primary school as a vote getting stunt. The school later put out a memo saying that this stunt (of which they obviously disapproved) was nothing to do with them and that they were not affiliated to the Conservatives in any way. Telling, I think, that this state school was good enough for Nokes’ vote obtaining stunt, but not good enough for her to send her children to (who attend a private school). Could you get more scumbag Tory than this?? Well done, Caroline!
David Simmons said this on January 24th, 2008 at 6:04 pm