A political donation of £40,000 ($70,000) made to a little-known Conservative party candidate campaigning in a rural Wales constituency is causing an outcry in U.K. politics.
The reason: the $2 billion hedge fund behind the contribution. Christofferson, Robb and Co., based in New York with an office in London, last year contributed to the Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire Conservative Association to benefit Simon Hart — chief executive of the pro-hunting group Countryside Alliance. The move caught the attention of John Dixon, an opponent in the race who represents Plaid Cymru, the Welsh nationalist party. Outraged about the connection to the hedge fund, Mr. Dixon decided to publicly denounce Mr. Hart in his blog.
“The Tory campaign in this constituency is being bankrolled ... using profits from a hedge fund which short sells shares in financial institutions and deals in the sort of mortgage-based securities which have been such a major factor in the recent financial turmoil,” Mr. Dixon wrote in the posting Sept. 18.
Mark Fullbrook, spokesman for Christofferson Robb, said the four managers who together made the contribution did nothing wrong. Johan Christofferson, one of the managers who made a donation and a founding member of the firm, supports the right to hunt with hounds — a practice that was banned under the 2004 Hunting Act.
“Johan and his partners know Simon,” Mr. Fullbrook said. “They think he'd be a great member of Parliament and decided to give him some support. It's as simple as that.” — Thao Hua