Woolas verdict: Guilty

By Mark Ferguson / @markfergusonuk

Update: Woolas has been suspended from the Labour Party – we’ll bring you a full statement when we have one. Harriet Harman has publicly disowned Phil Woolas, and Labour won’t support any appeal, saying:

“The court has found that Phil Woolas said things that he knew were untrue during his election campaign. It is no part of Labour’s politics to try to win elections by telling lies. We believe in good community relations – in fact that is central to our politics – and Phil Woolas has been suspended from the Labour party.”

“The legal precedent set by this court judgment raises complex issues, including the dividing line between justified political debate and unacceptable remarks. This is an issue for all political parties, and Labour will ask the Electoral Commission to look at this.”

Phil Woolas has today been found guilty of breaching electoral law. Woolas will apply for a judicial review of the case – and won’t be answering questions to the media today. As things stand he’s banned from standing for election for three years. You can read the full verdict here.

Ladbrokes make Labour the overwhelming favourites to retain the seat in a by-election (Lab 1/3, Con 7/2, LD 8/1).

Speaking to Sky News, former Lord Chancellor Lord Falconer said:

“Inevitably the consequences of there being a successful challenge in an electoral court for the first time in a hundred years on the basis of fraud is bound to have ramifications right through the system.

“It means the courts are prepared to let people use them.”

However, Falconer said he didn’t believe any criminal charges would be brought against Woolas:

“This is an electoral court, what the court is interested in is what is the effect of what the candidate has done on the result of the election, it is not a criminal offence.”