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RSSBoris erupts at Ken
"You're a fucking liar," Johnson tells Livingstone after exchange on tax avoidance.
By George Eaton Published 03 April 2012 11:39
Boris Johnson and Ken Livingstone's relationship appears to have reached a new level of fractiousness. The Guardian's Hélène Mulholland reports that "Boris went nose to nose with Ken in a small lift and told Ken three times: "You're a fucking liar, you're a fucking liar, you're a fucking liar."
The mayor's outburst, since confirmed by Livingstone's team, was prompted by an exchange on tax avoidance during the LBC hustings. Livingstone alleged that Johnson, like him, had set up a company called "Finland Station" to channel his income payments, a claim the mayor flatly denied.
Here's the statement Team Johnson has issued:
My salary as Mayor is taxed as an employee of the GLA. In the same way as when I was an MP my salary was taxed as an employee. Any other income that I have received from outside endeavours has been received on a self-employed basis, to me as an individual (no company or other structure has been involved). No income earned by me has ever been paid to a "service" company, through which a person or person's freelance earnings can be channelled so that they pay corporation rather than income tax.
To suggest otherwise is a complete and utter fabrication.
Of course the real point is not about my tax arrangements. It is about the hypocrisy of a man who for years has railed against those who use special arrangements to reduce their tax and who has then been caught – bang to rights – doing the very same thing himself.
Tags: Boris Johnson Ken Livingstone London Mayoral Election
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38 comments
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FT Polis takes the mayoral election in an interesting direction: http://reveriesofasocialwalker.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/boris-johnson-unwi...
A bit of rage in a public official is an excellent thing. Boris is a splendid mayor and wuld make a fine Prime Minister, a lot better than any of those on offer. As for Livingstone, words fail me. His promises are all lies and his best friends are abusers of women. I would watch it if you're gay too. A nasty man posing as a cheeky chappie. Don't you think. Or, put more succinctly, a right c*nt.
To suggest that anyone involved in politics hasn't smeared a competitor or bent the truth the their own purposes is the height of naivety. Boris is the man who has constantly ranted against the need for an enquiry in to the truth of our rotten press, the man whose deputy pressured the Met to reduce resources allocated to the original enquiry. He has benefited from government schemes to bolster his claims to have the ear of government-which to me just shows that the old boys from the Bullingdon really do stick together no matter what and its not what you know but who you know. HOW ARE WE ALLOWING THIS PRE-WW II CRAP TO CONTINUE. Boris seems like a great dinner party guest but lets not confuse "bloody nice bloke" with elected representative of the people.
Do you really want someone who can't contain his rage as an elected official, despite Ken Livingstone's lies?
If there was the option, I'd vote for RON. Why is Ken standing for Labour-they should KNOW he doesn't have a stellar record, people do not have short memories!
Livingstone is a liar. Yes everyone knows that. He's also a first class moslem pandering pillock. Fact.
How do you say 'Fat Cat' in Turkish?
Mr Cool
How do you say 'Fat Cat' in Turkish?
Mr Cool
How do you say 'Fat Cat' in Turkish?
Mr Cool
How do you say 'Fat Cat' in Turkish?
Mr Cool
How do you say 'Fat Cat' in Turkish?
Mr Cool
How do you say 'Fat Cat' in Turkish?
Mr Cool
How do you say 'Fat Cat' in Turkish?
Mr Cool
How do you say 'Fat Cat' in Turkish?
Mr Cool
Fractiousness? Doesn't that make them a right pair of frackers?
"Boris had a TV production company that WASN'T used for any freelance earnings? Since when? "
It wasn't his company. He was a director at a company and I believe he owned a small stake. But it was not a company he set up or channelled any of his own income through. Ken set up and 100% owned a company which had no purpose except to avoid tax.
Ken is a liar and I am delighted to see his apologists out in force on this hopeless cause.
the old pants on fire line of attack.
Boris Johnson has lost his rag more times then an absent minded window cleaner.
Boris earns ten tims what Ken earns? Evidence, or do you just know it in your bones?
Boris earns ten tims what Ken earns? Evidence, or do you just know it in your bones?
Boris earns ten tims what Ken earns? Evidence, or do you just know it in your bones?jysAi
Boris had a TV production company that WASN'T used for any freelance earnings? Since when? It's well known that many presenters (Jonathan Ross and others) have their own production companies to supply content to various outlets. In return, they get a higher fee, have more control over the content (syndication fees and more), and get tax breaks.
Again, how is this not a tax break?
Boris earns ten times what Ken earns? Source please, or do you just KNOW it?
@Matthew Fox
Blimey, you must be desperate trying to shift the "blame" onto Boris!
Just as an example, (extracted from http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/andrewgilligan/100148975/boris-johnson... and are independantly checkable!), are the seven lies that Ken told in that one-hour LBC debate alone.....
Claim: “It is nonsense to say that crime’s coming down. Everywhere you go, crimes are up here, there and everywhere.”
Reality: Crime has fallen by around 11 per cent in the last four years. It has fallen by 1.8 per cent in the last year.
Claim: The latest Met figures show the force has “31,128 police officers,” less than when Livingstone left office.
Reality: The Met states that it has "more than 32,500 officers," several hundred more than when Livingstone left office.
Claim: Asked if his City Hall had paid £6,500 of public money to Jan Woolf, the undeclared mother of one of his secret children, Livingstone replied: “No.”
Reality: The GLA documents showing the payment to Ms Woolf’s personal company, Rootball Productions, are here.
Claim: “I went in to the [2004] election saying I will increase the congestion charge.”
Reality: Mr Livingstone’s 2004 manifesto made no mention of increasing the charge. Nor did he mention it at any point during the campaign. He had previously said that the charge would remain at £5 until at least 2013. Instead, shortly after being re-elected, he raised it by 60% – to £8.
Claim: “The average Londoner in zone 2 will save £1000 [from his fares plans over four years], and in zone 6 £1700.”
Reality: The average Londoner will save £150 over four years, or 72p a week, if the promise is delivered.
Claim: Ken stated that he "introduced" the Freedom Pass.
Reality: Free London-wide bus travel for pensioners was introduced in 1973, eight years before Livingstone became GLC leader. The Tories extended the concession to the Tube (with a 20p flat fare) in 1977. The pass was renamed the “Freedom Pass” by the London boroughs in the 1990s.
Claim: “The fact is Boris and myself are in exactly the same position [on tax avoidance]. We both had media earnings. We both put them through a company.”
Reality: Boris channelled no earnings through any company and did not avoid income tax on any of his earnings, as he has himself said and as is shown here.
No wonder Boris called him a Liar, i'm just suprised he was as calm about it on air!!!
Not really BigC, I see your not prepared to jump on that grenade.
I take it I am factual incorrect? Don't tell me, Michael Howard sacked Boris for being too good at his job.
Am I to take it you have never heard of the two women in question?
If you are not prepared to face the facts, more fool you old man.
KEN LIVINGSTONE - "You're a fucking liar, you're a fucking liar, you're a fucking liar."
Come on BigC, Boris has a history of making false statements, why did Michael Howard feel the need to sack Boris from the Shadow Cabinet?
Have you ever heard of Petronella Wyatt or Anna Fazackerley, if not, you and MrDangertomyself are on the same page.
We all know Boris is passionate, that is why my sympathy always extends to Mrs Johnson
Excellent display of energy against that worm (and indeed, liar) Livingstone.
Keep screaming, Tim Direland, perhaps someone someday will take your futile and ceaseless bleating seriously.
I agree, brave anonymous person, that is futile to expect Boris Johnson to speak out against smears of paedophilia undertaken by fund-raising executives in the Conservative Party (all of whom worked to raise funds for Anne Milton, for some strange reason). That was my point. If I had not discovered the effort to be futile, I would not be so amused by Boris being so agitated by far less damaging lies he perceives as being aimed at him.
I will also acknowledge that there are some people who do not take these appalling smears seriously. Like Anne Milton, who really should take it more seriously considering that it happens so often under her 'leadership'. Like Jonathon Lord, who admitted that he took no action himself because an election was in progress.
What Douglas Morpeth has to say about it all remains a mystery, but I'm sure there are some who are privy to the views he will only share privately.
Nice to see Boris finally showing some passion. Nothing wrong with that, especially when the person he said it to IS a self confessed liar and hypocrite!
There is indeed a company called Finland Station
37 WARREN STREET
LONDON
W1T 6AD
Company No. 05774105
http://wck2.companieshouse.gov.uk/71dbebafc8460fed3c1405fd4daff47a/compd...
With a liitle spending, it would be easy enough to see who the directors are.
Er... Does it happen to be true (the accusation). Yes it does. So good on Boris.
Ken is a liar. Clearly and irrefutably. He is also smearing Boris to distract from these lies.
The fact he is a leftie liar seems to make those with little integrity or at least an abundance of partisanship give him a free pass. He brings shame on the movement and on London.
Boris is pathetic.
Boris obviously earns ten times what Ken gets.
Ken is putting up a fight this time and the Bullingdon bully doesn't like it up 'im.
BJ has a point. If KL is lying then he has every right to be angry. I would go further and demand a retraction. KL must clearly have concerns that he can't beat BJ by talking exclusively about politics.
Ken- Boris- you are running to be Mayor of one of the most important cities in the world. Grow up. Dear New Statesman(and your brethren the Spectator) could you also grow up,. I don't know if you had noticed but this country has undergone some enormous political, economic, and social changes, while we all appreciate the tribalism you manufacture at a time when we are seeing the most enormous political consensus, I have witnessed more maturity at a 5 year olds birthday part. THis is apparently our political system. Grow the feck up. The lot of you. Spectator will be fine, but quite frankly how the New Statesman intends to remain commercially viable while churning out the bilge we have become accustomed to- I don't know. Won'yt someone think of the poor hacks who surely want to contribute something to political journalism instead of churning out this crap. I know the rest of us would like some evidence that our political system doesnt operate this way.
Boris Johnson didn't express any anger, rage, or even mild distaste when I showed him evidence of his fellow Conservatives attacking critics with false allegations of paedophilia and child rape. He actually laughed it off at the time. But if he feels Ken Livingstone has been less than accurate he blows his top? There's something really wrong about BJ's priorities, never mind his temperament.
Blimey! Boris unravelling :D