Watchdog criticises Miriam Appeal

MP George Galloway's Miriam Appeal, the campaign set up by him in 1998 to oppose UN sanctions on Iraq, is believed to have received at least £230,000 in improper donations, according to a report by the Charity Commission.

The commission says it is satisfied funds received by the appeal were spent for humanitarian purposes, but it adds that, in accepting the money, the appeals five trustees were "not sufficiently vigilant and did not properly discharge their legal duties regarding these donations."

Mr Galloway's branded the allegation a "complete and utter lie."

The money came from Chairman of the charity, Fawaz Zureikat, after he paid illicit kickbacks to Saddam Hussein's regime for a contract under the oil-for-food programme.

The oil-for-food programme was set up by the UN to enable Iraq to sell its oil to the world market in the period of the sanctions.

The commission found that Mr Zureikat donated £448,000 to the appeal, a third of its total income between 1998 and 2003 when it stopped operating.

The commission stated: "As Mr Zureikat made his donations to the appeal from commissions and other payments derived from the programme, the commission has concluded that these donations came from improper resources."

The commission says it does not have any powers of criminal prosecution and will not be taking any further action.

Mr Galloway and two other trustees deny any wrongdoing.

(CD/SP)