Post by Teddy Bear on Apr 1, 2009 17:49:33 GMT
The Home Secretary includes her husbands' porn video rental as part of her expenses, showing the world just what the UK government is about, and instead of the BBC condemning this behaviour in their news reports, they focus on the hunt for the mole that leaked this finding. Since the Conservatives have made public that they would not increase the BBC license fee, it is clear that the BBC is bending over backwards to avoid justifiably humiliating Labour.
BBC's hunt for the 'mole' who leaked proof of Jacqui Smith's porn claim misses the target
By James Chapman
Last updated at 1:01 AM on 01st April 2009
The BBC and Commons Speaker Michael Martin were blasted last night for failing to condemn Jacqui Smith for claiming porn on her expenses.
Both focused instead on the hunt for the so-called 'mole' who leaked proof of the claim.
Rather than reflecting public anger on the issue, the BBC led its coverage for much of yesterday on reports that a committee of MPs was investigating the leak.
It quoted Labour MP Sir Stuart Bell, who sits on the Members' Estimates Committee, saying a mole has allegedly tried to sell the expenses records of all MPs for £300,000.
Meanwhile, the Speaker expressed his anger at the leaking of Miss Smith's expenses claims - but not the inappropriateness of claiming sex movies on the public purse.
The TaxPayers' Alliance said: 'The Speaker should be more concerned about cleaning up Parliament, not getting paranoid about leaks.'
On the BBC's coverage it said: 'The majority of people know the real story is the way MPs are abusing the taxpayers' generosity, not hunting down the person who is exposing how public money is being squandered.'
By James Chapman
Last updated at 1:01 AM on 01st April 2009
The BBC and Commons Speaker Michael Martin were blasted last night for failing to condemn Jacqui Smith for claiming porn on her expenses.
Both focused instead on the hunt for the so-called 'mole' who leaked proof of the claim.
Rather than reflecting public anger on the issue, the BBC led its coverage for much of yesterday on reports that a committee of MPs was investigating the leak.
It quoted Labour MP Sir Stuart Bell, who sits on the Members' Estimates Committee, saying a mole has allegedly tried to sell the expenses records of all MPs for £300,000.
Meanwhile, the Speaker expressed his anger at the leaking of Miss Smith's expenses claims - but not the inappropriateness of claiming sex movies on the public purse.
The TaxPayers' Alliance said: 'The Speaker should be more concerned about cleaning up Parliament, not getting paranoid about leaks.'
On the BBC's coverage it said: 'The majority of people know the real story is the way MPs are abusing the taxpayers' generosity, not hunting down the person who is exposing how public money is being squandered.'