Campaign for Better Charities

Duncan MacKenzie from the Campaigns and Communications team of Campaign for Better Transport, “a Charitable foundation” They receive £79,639 a year of Council Taxpayers money via London Councils. They also receive funding from Transport for London, sent out the following email:

We’ve been approached by a campaigner in Nottingham who’s alerted us that the Conservatives, who have just won control of the local council, have said they’re going to cancel the planned tram extension there.  So to help, we’ve been wondering if we can find other examples of things the Tories are doing which are bad for sustainable public transport.  Can you tell us if they’ve done or said anything in your area that’s grabbed your attention about local bus, tram or rail travel, planned roads, or airports?  We’re thinking of ‘negative’ things – things that show that they’re hostile to good public transport. Perhaps also, what they do and say locally can give us some idea of how they’ll really behave in government.

When you tell us what they’ve been up to near you, we’ll try to put that in the national picture and see if we can build up a profile of their local actions and policies across the country.

Please send all your comments to me….

After complaints about the bias and blatant partisanship from a government funded charity the Campaign for Better Transport has offered a clarification. No need really as the content of the email makes it perfectly clear that the CBT is looking for dirt on the conservatives however.

Good morning,
This is an email to clarify a note we sent round yesterday asking for examples of transport policies being made or considered at a local level, because I realise the note may have come across as party political.

The email referred to the Conservative Party because in the elections earlier this month the Conservatives gained control of 30 of the 34 councils. It should instead have asked for examples of ‘council’ actions or thinking. Because of the dominance of the Conservatives at the council level, the term Conservatives was used almost as shorthand. It should not have been. We are interested in information about local council transport decisions, not solely Conservative
council decisions.

We are a non-partisan organisation. We are interested in securing good transport policies and programmes, not in party political issues. We work with all political parties to improve public transport. I’m sorry if yesterday’s email gave you a different impression.
I hope this email clarifies things and am happy to take any questions.

Only one question really when are Duncan MacKenzie and his boss Communications Director Estelle Taylor going to be sacked for misuse of public money.

Anyone wishing to complain to the Charities Commission can find details here

http://www.charitycommission.gov.uk/tcc/…

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