Lib Dems spent big in final push to win Dobson seat

Published: 15 July, 2010
by RICHARD OSLEY

THE Liberal Democrats ploughed thousands of pounds into a last-minute mission to unseat Labour MP Frank Dobson in the heat of this year’s election battle.

Files released this week show how Lib Dem candidate Jo Shaw had spent significantly less than Mr Dobson on her “long campaign”, categorised as the months before Gordon Brown officially called the General Election.

But in the final weeks before the May 6 polling day, a time characterised by so-called wild “Cleggmania” and enthusiasm for the Lib Dems in the wake of the TV debates, Ms Shaw’s team ran closest to the spending limits in Holborn and St Pancras.

Her campaign spent £10,630.78 in the final five weeks, whereas Mr Dobson spent £7,804.80 over those last days of campaigning.

The money went on election mail-shots and advertising as Ms Shaw’s odds of causing a surprise result were shortened by bookmakers amid the national swing towards the Lib Dems, and her colleagues briefed journalists that her chances of beating Mr Dobson in his Labour heartland were improving.

By law, cash spent on election campaigning has to be made public to ensure a level playing field. Receipts and ledgers were made available at Camden’s electoral services office this week. They provide clues as to how the different political parties targeted individual constituencies.

While Ms Shaw had the highest spend in the “short campaign”, her overall outlay was much less than Mr Dobson or Conservative candidate George Lee, who came third. 

For example, Mr Dobson spent £14,947 and Mr Lee even more, £17,951, on the long campaign compared with Ms Shaw’s expenses of £6,559 over the same period. 

Her receipts suggest she spent much less on printing costs.

Mr Lee was the biggest spender in Holborn and St Pancras. Ledgers show that his campaign used some of its money to hire a delivery firm to distribute election material.

In Hampstead and Kilburn, Conservative Chris Philp spent the most in the race to unseat Labour’s Glenda Jackson, using nearly £10,000 more than his rivals. 

His costs, covered by donations, included spending £6,942 on roadside hoardings bearing his face and slogans – the first time a local election candidate had used such a tactic. Overall, he spent £39,475.

Ms Jackson’s campaign spent £27,191 overall, while third placed Lib Dem Ed Fordham, the bookies’ favourite going into the polls, used £29,417.

High-profile indepen­dent candidate Tamsin Omond, who lost her deposit, ran up around £7,000 in expenses but the costs were covered by a one-off donation made by bank transfer by a supporter in Dorset. The data reveals the Green Party, meanwhile, spent significantly more on campaigns in Holborn and St Pancras, than on Beatrix Campbell’s tilt in Hampstead and Kilburn.