When does a will not execute your will? When political parties get involved, it would seem.
So, why did the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats think it was okay to take money left by former nurse Joan Edwards for “whichever Government is in office at the date of my death for the Government in their absolute discretion to use as they may think fit” and divide it up for their own coffers?
Davis Wood, the solicitors handling Miss Edwards’ estate, said through a statement that when the will was drafted in 2001 they had checked with her “the unusual nature of her proposed bequest”.
“It was confirmed by Miss Edwards at the time of her instructions that her estate was to be left to whichever political party formed the government at the date of her death,” they said.
But who really thought this lady said to have been all about helping people but who kept her political views quiet wanted her donation to be used to fund electioneering rather than, say, schools or hospitals?
The spinster’s £520,000 bequest to the nation may seem dwarfed by the enormous national deficit we have, but it is an incredible amount of money for an individual to hand over and it could do an awful lot of good for a positive project somewhere in the UK.
Investigative journalism at Westminster rebuked spin doctors’ claims the donation was for “the party of the government of the day” as opposed to the public purse and now, following a public outcry, both Coalition partners have said they will hand the money over to the Treasury.
Was this a cash grab by political parties? Or was it a mistake on the part of Ms Edwards’ solicitors? Did they misinterpret her will? Or could it be that Treasury Solicitors a different office from HM Treasury and Attorney General, Tory MP Dominic Grieve, ruled the money was a “party political donation”.
The last suggestion, reported to have been suggested by Conservative and Liberal Democrat “sources” at Westminster, has been slapped down by the Attorney General’s Office, which emphasised the AG “provided no advice”.
Whatever the cause of this muddle, it is unacceptable.
Could it be an argument for the state funding of parties? It would stop this sort of money grab and also take away the recent controversy that has surrounded the Labour Party over how much it is given by trades unions.
This donation only emerged in the latest Electoral Commission report of party donations, being the largest cash gift handed over, and was further investigated from there.
I doubt those in power would have bothered to investigate and correctly return the money themselves if left unchecked.
Well done, power of the Press.