Annex 137
File note by the Parliamentary Commissioner
for Standards
Dr Reid & Mr Maxton
18 May 2000
Telephone conversation with Alex Rowley
I telephoned Alex Rowley and asked him—"are
there any documents or Labour Party letters which you know of
which make reference to the employment conditions and salary arrangements
for Kevin Reid and/or Chris Winslow or Suzanne Hilliard?"
I asked him had he written, seen or been aware of any financial
references given by the Party for any of these people. He said
that his understanding was that there was a letter, he wasn`t
sure as he couldn`t remember whether he had written it himself
or whether it had been written by Annmarie Whyte. But it had certainly
been agreed by him and Annmarie Whyte. He thought it had been
created and sent in May 1998. He did not recall this letter until
he was made aware of it two weeks before Dean Nelson broke his
story in The Observer in June 1999. I asked who had made
him aware of it at that time and he said Leslie Quinn. He said
that she had confirmed to him that there was a letter on file
which confirmed that Kevin Reid was in the full-time employment
of the Labour Party. Leslie Quinn had told him at that point that
she was under pressure to remove that letter but that she was
declining to do so. Alex Rowley asked her what she thought he
should do about it if anybody asked questions of him and Leslie
Quinn said to him that he should tell the truth. I told Alex Rowley
that I would write to him immediately with my same questions so
that I could have his answer in writing for my records and he
said he would provide it.
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