Editor

Dewsbury Reporter
17 Wellington Road
Dewsbury
WF13 1HQ

Dear Sir,

I am writing from the Sunlight Centre for Open Politics in response to Shahid Malik MP's
comments made in your newspaper on 19th June 2009 about the second inquiry into his
parliamentary expenses. [MP Shahid Malik welcomes second inquiry over expenses]

Mr Malik's comments about the Sunlight Centre being a 'clandestine Conservative group' are
wholly untrue. If Mr Malik had taken a look at our website he would have seen that we are
a non profit, non-partisan organisation. The aim of the Sunlight Centre is to shine a light
into all the irregularities in the dark corners of power in Westminster. In the past we have
investigated both Labour, Liberal Democrat and Conservative MPs. In August 2008 we
investigated the the then Conservative Party Chairman Caroline Spelman MP and the
employment of her Chief of Staff Simon Cawte. This resulted in us reporting them both to
the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner John Lyon, just as we did with Mr Malik. The
recent scandal over MP's expenses has brought our work to the forefront of British politics,
focusing our efforts on numerous MPs scandalous expense claims. Indeed if Mr Malik had
bothered to research our organisation he would have seen that we are currently
investigating the Conservative MP Brian Binley and intend to continue pursuing
investigations across the political spectrum.

We would like to re-iterate the fact that we are a privately funded organisation with no
party affiliation whose only wish is to promote openness and transparency in British politics
for the benefit of the British public and would appreciate an aknowledgment as such.
Perhaps such a casual disregard for accuracy is what gets Mr Malik into trouble in the first
place.

Yours Sincerely,

T : 020 7837 3312 F : 070 9201 2337 E : team@sunlight-cops.org.uk

Albion Buildings, 1 Back Hill, London, EC1R 5EN
A not-for-profit company limited by guarantee, advocating political transparency and openness.
Chris Galley

chris.galley@sunlight-cops.org.uk

T : 020 7837 3312 F : 070 9201 2337 E : team@sunlight-cops.org.uk

Albion Buildings, 1 Back Hill, London, EC1R 5EN
A not-for-profit company limited by guarantee, advocating political transparency and openness.