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Cabinet ministers have become embroiled in an extraordinary row over electoral reform amid claims that the campaign against the alternative vote is "poisoning" British politics and hiding the sources of its funding.
In a dramatic break from ministerial etiquette, Chris Huhne, the energy secretary, who backs AV, has written to Tory chairman Baroness Warsi – a cabinet colleague and patron of the No-to-AV campaign – demanding that she "comes clean" over the source of its funding and stops the "scares and smears"
against supporters of change.
He also accuses the No campaign of being a front for the Conservative party. "Are the No camp campaigning in dark glasses because they don't want to show that the bulk of their funds – in cash and in kind – are donations from the Conservative party?" Huhne asked. "How many Conservative employees have been seconded to the No campaign? Will you declare the full value of their services properly as donations?"
The No campaign has so far held back details of its donors, as it is permitted to do until six months after the referendum on May 5.
The Yes campaign, by contrast, has said that 95% of its funds, which total around £2 million, have come from the Electoral Reform Society and the Rowntree Trust.
Huhne also criticised Warsi and the No campaign for "scaremongering" about the cost of moving to AV.
"It discredits both your party and your campaign to use secret donations to advance scares and smears. Please stop now before you poison our politics," he said.
Last night Jane Kennedy, the former Labour MP for Liverpool Wavertree and a leading figure against AV, dismissed Huhne's argument that the No campaign was a Tory front.
"It is utter nonsense. The No-to-AV campaign is supported by a significant majority of Labour members of parliament.
"This is a typical Liberal Democrat response. When they start to lose the argument, they get personal.". We have got Dennis Skinner, John Prescott and John Reid involved in the campaign, all of whom have earned the affection of the Labour party
A spokesman for the No-to-AV campaign said that the organisation was planning to reveal the identity of donors within 12 days.
Yesterday Greg Dyke, the former director general of the BBC, said that MPs would be denied "jobs for life" in safe seats if Britain switched to the AV system.
"In constituency after constituency, what matters is not getting the electorate to support you but getting the party to nominate you," he said at the launch of the Yes campaign in London.
"Once nominated, you've got a job for life in seat after seat, which is why we've got rather average politicians. AV will begin to change that."

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