Kwasi Kwarteng under pressure over champagne reception at home of hedge fund boss
The chair of the Labour party has written to her Conservative counterpart calling on him provide a full list of attendees at a private champagne reception attended by Kwasi Kwarteng just hours after his controversial “mini” Budget.
Jake Berry, Tory chair, has defended the chancellor’s meeting with financiers at the home of a wealthy hedge fund manager although City traders were shorting the pound following his announcement of unfunded tax cuts. Berry insisted on Sunday that City investors and other donors should be “lauded” by the general public.
Anneliese Dodds, Labour chair, has written to Berry urging him to produce a full list of attendees at the event and whether they paid a fee to be there or pledged donations. She also asked whether civil servants were present and minutes taken, “and if not, then why not” given that sensitive information may have been disclosed.
Berry said the event was not dominated by hedge funds but instead was attended by “some of Britain’s leading entrepreneurs”. Pressed on whether some hedge fund managers were at the event, Berry conceded this was the case: “There were, or there was I think one that I know of.”
That would appear to be a reference to Andrew Law, head of hedge fund Caxton Associates and a Tory donor, who hosted the private event.
This story originally appeared on: Financial Times - Author:Jim Pickard
