Scots tycoon to raise £600,000 for Cameron's Downing Street campaign

Published on Sunday 27 August 2006 00:28

DAVID Cameron's bid to win the race for Number 10 will be boosted next month when Scotland stages one of Britain's biggest ever political fundraisers, staged by one of the country's richest men.

Scots businessman Sir Jack Harvie is expected to raise 600,000 in one night for the Tories at a 1,000-a-table dinner in Glasgow.

Sir Jack, who last weekend spent 1m on an extraordinary 70th birthday party at his home near Milngavie, was a key supporter of Margaret Thatcher, and now has swung behind Cameron as the leader seeks to raise an election fighting fund prior to the next general election.

The head of Central Building Contractors, based in Govan, Glasgow, Sir Jack has long been renowned as the Tory party's leading fundraiser in Scotland.

Two years ago, a similar fundraiser brought in more than 300,000 for the party. Insiders are predicting that the sums raised next month will double that figure - an indication of Cameron's galvanising effect on the party.

Cameron will be travelling to Scotland to attend the function, with diners expected to pay thousands of pounds simply to get the chance of speaking to the new leader.

The fundraiser, to be held at Glasgow's Hilton Hotel, comes on the back of one of the most lavish parties ever seen in Scotland. Sir Jack flew in soul singer Dionne Warwick to sing for the 300 guests at his mansion

Well known for donating to charity, family and friends, the tycoon gave more than 50,000 to Glasgow's Hikkaduwa fund after the Asian tsunami.

One insider said: "The Scottish fundraiser is the biggest fundraiser in Britain, which is why the leadership pays it such attention."

The source added: "When the Conservatives were doing badly the support shrivelled away, but as people see the possibility of a return to power, then people want to get involved."

Meanwhile, Scottish Tory leader Annabel Goldie is this weekend putting forward a new "three strikes" policy in a bid to crack down on the "cancer of repeat offenders".

The Conservatives are proposing that anyone who gets a third jail sentence should automatically serve an extra period behind bars.

Goldie said: "The first duty of government is protect society from those who seek to destroy it. There has been a regrettable erosion of our criminal justice system since Labour and the Lib Dems came to power - fewer police on the beat, easy access to bail, ineffective community sentences and a cancer of repeat offenders causing mayhem and misery.

"I want to put that right by sending a clear message that society will not tolerate repeated, serious offending such as mugging, robbing, rape, assault and burglary."

That extra period behind bars would be the average of the person's three custodial sentences - meaning if someone was sentenced to two years, then three years, then four years, they would serve an extra three years in custody. The additional period would also have to be served in full in prison.

The Tory politician also claimed too many jails were "rife with drugs", and added that they failed to address offenders' behaviour.