Tories, Academies and Really, Really Big Money: Whose Hands on the Levers of Power

Background
Ordinary folk like us are sometimes taken aback by the sheer brass-necked cheek exhibited by Tory politicians and we don’t just mean Osborne’s ‘We are all in this together’ mantra!

Take the case of Robert Edmiston, for example.

In the Sunday Times Rich List 2013 Robert Edmiston was ranked 209th of the wealthiest people in the UK with an estimated fortune of £440million. He made his money in the motor trade and through property and vehicle finance. One of his ventures was the acquisition of the Subaru car dealerships in the UK – there is one on the Otley Road at the top of Pool Bank.

Mr Edmiston is an evangelical and explicitly anti-gay marriage Christian who makes large donations to charities, including Christian Vision. Through his charities he is the sponsor of three secondary schools, under the single umbrella of Grace Foundation. These schools lie within the English…