Conservative candidate Craig Mackinlay charged over election expenses

LONDON — Former Conservative MP and current candidate, Craig Mackinlay, has been charged with knowingly making false declarations of his election expenses.

Mackinlay narrowly beat then UKIP leader Nigel Farage in 2015 to become the MP for South Thanet.

However, Mackinlay is accused of failing to properly declare spending on his campaign. The allegations surround his use of the Conservative party's "battlebus" used to bus national activists in to help win the seat.

Under election rules all spending on local campaigns must be listed separately and be within a set limit.

In a statement the Crown Prosecution Service said on Friday morning that they had authorised charges to be made against Mackinlay, as well as separate charges against one of his campaign aides and against another national Conservative party official.

"On 18 April we received a file of evidence from Kent Police concerning allegations relating to Conservative Party expenditure during the 2015 General Election campaign,"

"We then asked for additional enquiries to be made in advance of the 11 June statutory time limit by when any charges needed to be authorised.

"Those enquiries have now been completed and we have considered the evidence in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors.

"We have concluded there is sufficient evidence and it is in the public interest to authorise charges against three people.

"Craig Mackinlay, 50, Nathan Gray, 28, and Marion Little, 62, have each been charged with offences under the Representation of the People Act 1983 and are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on 4 July 2017.

"Criminal proceedings have now commenced and it is extremely important that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice these proceeding."

Mackinlay has been charged with breaching Section 82 of

The fines related to a number of seats contested by the party in 2015 as well as several by-elections in 2014.

The commission found the party's general election spending return was missing payments worth at least £104,765 while other payments worth up to £118,124 were either not reported to the commission or were incorrectly reported.

The CPS later decided not to authorise charges against a number of other Conservative MPs, having found insufficient evidence that the false declarations had been made knowingly.

This is a developing story...

Conservative candidate Craig Mackinlay charged over election expenses

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