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Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has denied any wrongdoing by Liberal Democrat MPs after a party fundraiser faced allegations that he sought to bypass donation laws.

The party's election campaign leader Lord Ashdown acknowledged that Ibrahim Taguri had "serious questions to answer" after the Daily Telegraph reported that he told an undercover reporter posing as a wealthy Indian businessman that he could channel donations via family members and backdate cheques to avoid appearing on public registers.

The party's former chief fundraiser - who has quit as the Lib Dems' general election candidate in Brent Central following the allegations - was also said to have promised big donations could "open doors" and introduced the fake donor to key figures including Treasury Chief Secretary Danny Alexander.

Mr Alexander was recorded at a dinner thanking the supposed businessman for what he was doing, adding: "I won't intrude on the details, but genuinely it will make a difference."

Mr Clegg told LBC radio that the recording showed "Danny being a polite guy, just saying thank you to someone who he has been told is supporting the party".

The Lib Dem leader added: "The idea that Danny or any parliamentarian has done anything wrong is categorically untrue.

"On the issue of Ibrahim Taguri, no cheque has been received by the Liberal Democrats, no cheque has been cashed. If we had received this cheque in question, of course it would have been scrutinised and checked."

Mr Clegg said that, alone among political parties, the Lib Dems had invited the Electoral Commission to examine the processes they have in place to scrutinise donations and been told they were "sound and satisfactory".

He called on the other major parties to come together within six months of the general election to agree new rules for party funding, accusing David Cameron and Ed Miliband of "skewering" his attempts to deal with the problem during this Parliament.

Asked whether individuals could buy access to senior Lib Dems with large donations, Mr Clegg said: "That's ridiculous. It doesn't work like that at all."

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Lib Dem 'faces serious questions'

March 10, 2015 Senate Democrat Leadership Press Conference
Senate Democratic leaders discussed an anti-human trafficking bill, a potential nuclear weapons deal with Iran and a Department of Justice investigation into Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., at...

By: Roll Call

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March 10, 2015 Senate Democrat Leadership Press Conference - Video

By Emily Cahn Posted at 2:10 p.m. today

Cannon is a Michigan Democrat. (Douglas Graham/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

Retired Army Maj. Gen. Jerry Cannon is mulling another bid against Rep. Dan Benishek, R-Mich., according to two sources with knowledge of the Democratsplans.

Democrats billed Cannon a veteran of the wars in Vietnamand Iraqas a top recruit in 2014. But he went on to loseto Benishek by a 7-point margin last year, a poor cycle overall for Democrats.

If Cannon runsagain, he may facea primary.State Rep. Scott Dianda, a Democrat who represents a legislative district in the Upper Peninsula, is also considering a bid, according to partyoperatives.

Benishek came to Congress in 2010, winning an open-seat race to succeed former Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich.

Benisheknearly lost re-election in 2012, defeating former state Rep. Gary McDowell by less than 1 point. That same year, Mitt Romney won the district by 8 points.

Yet in 2014, Benishek became a more astute campaigner, picking upthemost-improved candidatetitle from national Republican operatives.

But its unclear whetherBenishek will seek a fourth term. During his 2010 campaign, Benishekwas a vocal supporterof term limits, and signed onto a pledge to only serve three terms.

I am happy to tell voters I strongly favor term limits, Benishek said in a 2010 news release. Three terms and youre retired seems about right to me.

Excerpt from:
Democrat Mulls Rematch in Michigan House Contest

Politics By Ethan Brown, Wed, March 11, 2015

Donors ready to open up their wallets for Hillary Clintons assumed run for president in 2016 were reportedly stunned after it was revealed she used her personal email account while holding the title as U.S. Secretary of State.

While some of her donors blame the Republican Party and the media for their intense coverage on the issue, others are worried that the latest scandal may derail her chances of winning the Democratic nomination, CNN reports. Arecent poll, however,states that Democratic voters support Clinton over any other challenger.

Alan Patricof, a longtime friend of the Clintons, said that there isnt a scandal going on.

I dont perceive any concern among the donor community who recognize that this is just one of many issues that gets blown out of proportion when it relates to Clinton, Patricof told CNN.

Another anonymous donor felt the opposite way, saying, It is a huge distraction and will take a long time to resolve.

In a press conference on Mar. 10, Clinton explained that she had cooperated with authorities and rules concerning the matter, but would not allow investigators to take her personal server, which was the primary server used to send the emails.According to Clinton, the server contains personal information, such as conversations with her husband, planning her daughters wedding and making funeral arrangements for her mother.

While she said it might have been smarter to have to different e-mails accounts for her work and personal life, she also said it didnt seem like an issue at the time.

Critics were quick to jump on Clintons comments, one being the head of the Republican National Committee.

Reince Priebus said shortly after Clinton spoke, saying, Because only Hillary Clinton controls her personal email account and admitted she deleted many of her emails, no one but Hillary Clinton knows if she handed over every relevant email."

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Democrat Donors Divided On Whether Hillary's Email Scandal Impacts Her 2016 Hopes

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie has warned that the SNPs plans for full fiscal autonomy would pose a double whammy for Scotlands jobs and growth.

Today (Wednesday 11th March) the Scottish Government will publish its Government Expenditure and Revenue Scotland report, which shows Scotlands balance sheet.

Last years figures showed that UK offshore oil revenues halved from 11.3bn in 2011-12 to 6.6bn in 2012-13. This years figures will come after a volatile year for the global oil industry, with prices per barrel falling to as low as $50USD a barrel.

Mr Rennie said that the oil industry, local economies and Scotlands economy has benefitted from Liberal Democrat economic policies which have delivered lower taxes, higher pensions, new jobs and better healthcare.

Speaking ahead of the GERS figures, Mr Rennie said:

The SNPs plans for full fiscal autonomy would pose a double whammy for Scotlands jobs and growth. It would mean that we don't have the breadth of the UK economy to give us the flexibility needed to support the oil industry through tax allowances and other incentives. It would mean we would face tough decisions over how to support public spending in order to plug the deficit.

Today we need straight answers from the SNP on how their economic assertions align with real economic facts.

The oil industry, local economies from the North East up to Shetland and Scotlands economy as a whole has benefited from Liberal Democrat economic policies pursued as part of the UK government. Taxes are down, pensions are up, there are new jobs and better healthcare. I dont want to put that at risk.

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SNP plans a double whammy risk to jobs and growth