Goldsmith to appear on Channel 4 News after expenses investigation complaint

Richmond Park MP and director of The Ecologist Zac Goldsmith has accused Channel 4 News of preventing him from responding to its investigation into his election campaign expenses.

But the broadcaster has confirmed he will appear on the programme tonight, saying he was originally informed of the investigation a week ago.

Channel 4 ran an "exclusive" report on Thursday evening, following an investigation with the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, which raised questions over Goldsmith's spending during his election campaign.

At the end of the report, presenter Jon Snow told viewers Goldsmith was welcome to join him live for an interview, but that he had instead spoken to Sky News where the MP said he "couldn't have been more careful" over his claims.

Speaking on his blog, Goldsmith says he did offer to take part in a live interview with Channel 4 News and sent a written statement to the programme which was not used.

"Channel 4 put out an extraordinary report on election funding, focusing specifically on me," he writes. "It ended with Jon Snow saying that I'd spoken to the BBC and Sky, and that he'd be 'delighted' to have me on to reply. The clear implication was that I'd chosen not to.

"In fact, Jon Snow knows very well that I did try to respond to Channel 4 directly. I offered to address the points they raised in a live interview after the report, but they refused point blank. Instead, they asked for a written statement. They even added that without one, they would end the report with the words 'Zac Goldsmith declined to comment'."

In the post, Goldsmith says he did offer a written comment to Channel 4 News, which said: "I offered at 5.30 today to do a live interview addressing the issues raised in this item but was told by Channel Four that this was not possible."

"Not surprisingly, they didn't use my statement. It would have been embarrassing if they had. But nor did they allow me to respond on air," he adds on his blog.

A spokesperson for Channel 4 today told Journalism.co.uk that Goldsmith was given plenty of time to organise a response.

"He had ample opportunity to respond publicly to the important questions we put to him," she told Journalism.co.uk. "We are delighted that he will be appearing on the programme tonight to do so. He will be live with Jon Snow from 7pm."

In an interview with Sky, also shown by Channel 4 News at the end of its report, Goldsmith says he followed the "letter and spirit of the law" and that the Electoral Commission who have been given Channel 4's dossier of findings, will "find nothing out of order".

"The formula we used is precisely the formula used by every candidate and MP across the land. It is astonishing that Channel 4 refused me a right to reply yesterday, and still more so that they tried to conceal the fact at the end of their report. The channel has engaged in shoddy and disreputable journalism," he says.

"I will answer it in detail tomorrow evening, but first I am hoping to be able to tackle Jon Snow tomorrow, if he agrees."

Goldsmith also accused Channel 4 News of picking on him as a high-profile candidate, in his interview with Sky News, which the programme has denied.

"We refute any suggestion that Zac Goldsmith was targeted simply because he is a high-profile figure," its says in a release.

"The questions we have raised relating to his expenses are entirely legitimate. The issues we found regarding Mr Goldsmith's campaign expenses are materially different and of a different scale to those found in other returns we looked at.

"Channel 4 News stands fully behind its report, which was rigorously researched. The investigation into campaign spending continues".

Image courtesy of Annie Mole on Flickr.

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