Vote Leave loses legal challenge over Brexit spending breach
Source: The Guardian
Vote Leave loses legal challenge over Brexit spending breach
Judicial review dismisses attempt to have Electoral Commission ruling thrown out
Dan Sabbagh
Wed 21 Nov 2018 18.50 GMT
The official pro-Brexit campaign group has lost a judicial review aimed at trying to get an Electoral Commission ruling that it breached spending limits thrown out.
Vote Leave was challenging the findings of a report issued in July that it had exceeded the prescribed £7m limit by channeling funds via another campaign group, but the high court concluded on Wednesday that its case was groundless.
A judgment by Mrs Justice Yip said: I do not consider that the claimants grounds are arguable. She also dismissed an attempt to claim that the commission did not have the power to investigate the alleged overspending.
Vote Leave was fined £61,000 by the watchdog in July and its accounting officer, David Halsall, was referred to the police for further investigation.
-snip-
Read more:
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/nov/21/vote-leave-loses-legal-challenge-over-brexit-spending-breach