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| Version 4 | Version 5 |
|---|---|
| Tory donor is expelled from party | Tory donor is expelled from party |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| The Conservative party says it has expelled one of its multi-millionaire donors after he gave £100,000 to UKIP. | |
| Spread-betting tycoon Stuart Wheeler said he had made the UKIP donation because he believed the party was too soft on European integration. | |
| Mr Wheeler, an outspoken Eurosceptic, gave £5m to the Conservatives in 2001 and wanted to remain a party member. | |
| But he said: "I think that more than half the shadow cabinet are more Eurosceptic than the leadership." | |
| He had said that he would vote UKIP in European elections in June but that he intended to remain a member of the Conservative party. | |
| Donation delight | Donation delight |
| Stuart Wheeler said he found out he had been expelled by the Conservatives only after hearing the news on the BBC, BBC political correspondent Reeta Chakrabarti said. | Stuart Wheeler said he found out he had been expelled by the Conservatives only after hearing the news on the BBC, BBC political correspondent Reeta Chakrabarti said. |
| Mr Wheeler said the party was entitled to expel him, but stressed he was not a spokesman and should be allowed to express his views. | Mr Wheeler said the party was entitled to expel him, but stressed he was not a spokesman and should be allowed to express his views. |
| The decision to expel him is expected to be formally announced by party chairman Eric Pickles after a meeting by the Conservative Party board. | The decision to expel him is expected to be formally announced by party chairman Eric Pickles after a meeting by the Conservative Party board. |
| The move is thought to have had the full backing of Tory leader David Cameron. | The move is thought to have had the full backing of Tory leader David Cameron. |
| I think the leadership very much makes up its mind without regard to others Stuart Wheeler | |
| Mr Wheeler had told the News of the World newspaper that "the European Union is doing so much damage to our economy and our way of life that I can no longer vote Conservative at the European elections". | Mr Wheeler had told the News of the World newspaper that "the European Union is doing so much damage to our economy and our way of life that I can no longer vote Conservative at the European elections". |
| He said he had been urged by friends to "work from within" to change the direction of the Conservative Party, but had decided that the current party leadership would not allow it. | |
| "I think the leadership very much makes up its mind without regard to others, other than a few people at the very top," he said. | |
| "I think that more than half the shadow cabinet are more Eurosceptic than the leadership and would favour a tougher line on Europe." | |
| UKIP leader Nigel Farage said he was delighted with Mr Wheeler's donation. | UKIP leader Nigel Farage said he was delighted with Mr Wheeler's donation. |
| The decision to expel Mr Wheeler represented "a quick u-turn in 24 hours" for the Tories, who had previously said there were no plans to expel him, our correspondent added. | |
| "They've clearly decided that the prospect of Stuart Wheeler actively funding candidates who are going to stand against Tory candidates in European elections was really too much to stomach," our correspondent added. | "They've clearly decided that the prospect of Stuart Wheeler actively funding candidates who are going to stand against Tory candidates in European elections was really too much to stomach," our correspondent added. |