Annex 63
Letter to the Parliamentary Commissioner
for Standards from Mr Sarosh Zaiwalla
I am sorry the corrected transcript note of
our meeting had remained to be sent. I trust you have received
it now.
I am also sorry that in response to your letter
of 19 June 2000 has remained unattended. This is because I have
had to go abroad in the meantime.
The reference to the book account in my earlier
letter was a typographical error. It should have read bank account
and not book account. What I meant by that is that because my
cheque was asked to be drawn out in favour of Gala Dinner, there
must have been a Gala Dinner bank account from which could be
ascertained who were the individuals behind the Gala Dinners.
My accounts department has not found either from the books or
any other records any other entries concerning any payments to
Mr Vaz.
We had undertaken from the bank copy of the
cheque in respect of the cashbook entry for February 1994 which
I sent you. We have not done so for two reasons. Firstly, the
bank had in the past during our investigation for Milne arbitration
told us that it had not kept cheques up to that period. Secondly,
even if a copy of the cheque was available with bank, it would
show no more than the cheque was paid out cash by the bank. Should
you however wish to write directly to the bank to obtain a copy
of this cheque, I would be happy to give my consent to the bank
to provide a copy of this cheque, I would be happy to give my
consent to the bank to provide a copy of this cheque if they have
retained it, in which event I would be grateful if your office
would make it clear to the bank that you will be responsible for
the bank's charges for dealing with your enquiry.
With regard to the recommendation for honours,
I confirm that I have nothing further to add than what I have
already told you. I neither sought nor had been assured by Mr
Vaz or anyone of any such honours.
The report in The Sunday Telegraph suggesting
that I had told them to the contrary is a selective quote taken
out of context of what I had actually said. I confirm I have reported
The Sunday Telegraph's conduct to the Press Complaints Commission.
10 July 2000
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