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Other Payments and Benefits
received by Members from Mr Al Fayed
808. Mr Al Fayed has claimed
that, in addition to cash payments, Mr Hamilton received
Harrods gift vouchers totalling £8,000. He was uncertain
about the denominations of the vouchers and acknowledged that
no records existed by which they could be traced. Ms Bond recalled
having heard from Mr Al Fayed that Mr Hamilton sometimes
liked vouchers but there is otherwise no corroborative evidence.
Mr Hamilton denies receiving vouchers and there is, in
my view, insufficient evidence to show that he did.
809. Mr and Mrs Hamilton's
stay at the Ritz in 1987 is a matter of public record and was
the subject of an inquiry by the Select Committee on Members'
Interests in 1995. The Committee rejected Mr Hamilton's
claim that this hospitality was not registrable, but recommended
no further action.
810. Mr Hamilton
denies that this stay was part of his reward for lobbying; or
that it was an abuse of Mr Al Fayed's hospitality. Against this,
it is clear that Mr Hamilton was, at the time, engaging
in considerable activity on Mr Al Fayed's behalf and that Mr Greer
clearly felt that Mr Hamilton's conduct in regaling colleagues
with accounts of the scale of the hospitality he had enjoyed had
been self-indulgent (and potentially embarrassing to Mr Greer).
My conclusion is that, whoever first made the suggestion that
Mr Hamilton should stay at the Ritz, this hospitality was
part of his reward for lobbying services.
811. As regards the alleged
second stay in Paris at Mr Al Fayed's expense in 1990, I am unable
to reach a judgement because of the conflict of evidence which
has arisen as to whether the visit in fact took place (although
there is no doubt that Mr Hamilton originally canvassed
this possibility with Mr Al Fayed).
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