Naya Capital Management UK, which gave the Tories £500,000 prior to the June election, reportedly bet on the in-crisis construction company's shares falling.
- A hedge fund company that donated half a million pounds to the Conservatives before the election reportedly made over £7 million betting on Carillion's shares falling.
- Labour calls Theresa May a "hypocrite" over links to Naya Capital Management UK.
- Jeremy Corbyn accused the government of "negligence" over its handling of Carillion on Wednesday.
LONDON — Labour has called Theresa May a "hypocrite" over a large donation given to the Conservatives by a hedge fund that allegedly made £7.6 million betting on Carillion's shares falling.
Naya Capital Management UK, which gave £500,000 to the Tories the week prior to the June general election, is one of several hedge funds that bet on the in-crisis construction company's shares falling, the Daily Mirror reports.
Carillion's value dropped by more than two-thirds in July, giving Naya winnings of £7.6 million, the Mirror claims.
The construction firm collapsed this month, six months after Naya profited from its tumbling shares.
Carillion was one of the government's biggest contractors until it collapsed into liquidation on Monday after it ran up huge losses on contracts and battled heavy debts.
"Theresa May is a total hypocrite," Labour Shadow Cabinet Office Minister, John Trickett, said.
"Despite promising to crack down on irresponsible businesses her party is happy to accept cash from those who have pocketed millions of pounds from Carillion’s collapse.
“It shows that, yet again, the Conservatives’ interests lie with the privileged few, and not the thousands of Carillion employees that face losing their jobs."
A Conservative spokesperson rebuffed Labour's criticism, telling the Mirror: "All donations to the Conservative party are properly and transparently declared to the Electoral Commission, published by them, and comply fully with the law."
There is no evidence to say that either May or the Conservative Party were aware of the money Naya made betting on Carillion's share when they received the donation.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn accused May's government of being "deeply negligent" in a heated exchange over the collapse of Carillion in Prime Minister's Questions on Wednesday.
Corbyn asked the prime minister to explain why the government continued to award contracts to the in-crisis construction company decide repeated profit warnings.
"It [the government] did so even after the share price was in freefall and the company issues profit warnings. Why did the government do that?" Corbyn asked May.
"It looks like the government was handing Carillion public contracts either to keep the company afloat — which hasn't worked — or was just deeply negligent to the crisis coming down the line."
The prime minister defended the government's handling of the crisis and reassured workers that their livelihoods would be protected.
"It's also important that we've protected taxpayers from an unacceptable bailout of a private company," she told the House of Commons.