| Subj: | Enron bought access to Brit Ministers |
| Date: | 2/3/02 7:23:27 AM Pacific Standard Time |
Enron: the meetings Labour didn't
reveal
You scratch our backs...
Antony Barnett, Oliver Morgan
and Ed Vulliamy, New York
Sunday February 3,
2002
The
Observer
The row over Downing Street's links with energy giant Enron took a new twist
last night when a former vice-president of the company revealed details of
secret meetings it had with key Government figures.
Opposition MPs accused the Government of a 'cover-up' to mislead the public.
The disclosure came a week after Tony Blair came under pressure when MPs alleged that Enron had been able to swing his Government's energy policy its way after giving donations.
Enron, which wanted Labour to lift its ban on gas-fired power stations, admitted giving the party a series of gifts totalling £36,000, starting in 1997, to get access to Ministers. Blair intervened personally to water down the ban in 1998, and it was ended completely in November 2000.