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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Hain 'will not face prosecution' | Hain 'will not face prosecution' |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| Former cabinet minister Peter Hain will not face charges over the late declaration of donations to his deputy leadership bid, the BBC understands. | |
| Mr Hain, who quit the government in January to clear his name, was investigated over £103,000 declared late to the Electoral Commission. | Mr Hain, who quit the government in January to clear his name, was investigated over £103,000 declared late to the Electoral Commission. |
| The Crown Prosecution Service is due to make a statement at 1000 GMT. | The Crown Prosecution Service is due to make a statement at 1000 GMT. |
| But Mr Hain said he was pleased, after "ten months in limbo" to have been able to clear his name. | But Mr Hain said he was pleased, after "ten months in limbo" to have been able to clear his name. |
| He ran to be Labour's deputy leader but came fifth out of six in the contest in the summer of 2007 and initially declared £77,000 in donations to the Electoral Commission. | |
| Donations row | |
| But donations to the Labour Party came under the spotlight in November, when it emerged property developer David Abrahams had donated more than £650,000 using other people's names and police launched an investigation. | |
| I said all along that reporting some of the donations to my 2007 Labour party deputy Leader campaign late was an honest mistake - now everyone knows that it was Peter Hain Michael Crick on David Abrahams | |
| Mr Hain's rival in the deputy leadership contest - and eventual winner - Harriet Harman had to pay back a £5,000 donation to her own campaign after discovering it had come from one of Mr Abrahams' associates. | |
| Days later Mr Hain admitted donations to his own campaign were "not registered as they should have been". | |
| He initially said a £5,000 donation had been declared late because of an "administrative error". But in January he admitted £103,000 had not been declared, although none of them were from Mr Abrahams. | |
| Under the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 political donations need to be reported within 60 days of a donation being offered. | |
| A police investigation began and Mr Hain resigned from his cabinet post in January saying he had "made a mistake but it was an innocent mistake". | |
| In a statement on Friday, Mr Hain said: "I chose to leave government to clear my name and I am pleased I have now done so. | |
| "I said all along that reporting some of the donations to my 2007 Labour party deputy Leader campaign late was an honest mistake. Now everyone knows that it was. | "I said all along that reporting some of the donations to my 2007 Labour party deputy Leader campaign late was an honest mistake. Now everyone knows that it was. |
| "After ten months in limbo while the inquiry took its course, I now look forward to tackling again the issues of social justice, human rights and equality as I have done for all 40 years of my political life, both outside and inside government, from anti-apartheid protester to cabinet minister." | "After ten months in limbo while the inquiry took its course, I now look forward to tackling again the issues of social justice, human rights and equality as I have done for all 40 years of my political life, both outside and inside government, from anti-apartheid protester to cabinet minister." |
| He thanked his constituents in Neath and his family for their "wonderful support". | He thanked his constituents in Neath and his family for their "wonderful support". |