THE Vote No campaign against a European constitution raised about £500,000 from dinner at The Savoy for London’s business and media glitterati.

The organisers said that the success of this £300-a-plate event last Tuesday has again demonstrated the pulling power of their case before the European referendum, likely to be held in 2006.

Most of the money came from an auction of gifts, such as a dinner party supervised by the celebrity chef Marco Pierre White, as well as a picture of Baroness Thatcher and an invitation to tea with the former Prime Minister. Offers also included a day amid the corridors of power, featuring coffee with William Hague, the former Tory leader; a tour of Parliament from Lord Weatherill, the former Commons Speaker; tea with the Eurosceptic Labour MPs Frank Field and Kate Hoey; and drinks with Trevor Kavanagh, the political editor of The Sun. Kavanagh was one of the guest speakers along with Michael Spencer, the head of ICAP, the world’s largest money brokers. Mr Spencer’s gift of a “ritzy long weekend on the Rivera” on his 80ft Mangusta yacht raised more than £30,000 in the auction.

Lord Cranborne, the Marquess of Salisbury and a former Tory Cabinet minister, donated a “pair of rare breed Middle White breeding piglets” as well as a day’s shooting on his Dorset estate, which carried a reserve price of £3,000. Peter de Savary put a weekend at his Bovey Castle spa development on Dartmoor into the auction; Sir Frank Williams offered a tour for four around his Formula One motor racing headquarters; and Luke Johnson offered dinner for two at The Ivy restaurant in London.

The list of those attending the dinner threatened last night to generate controversy as well as cash after it emerged that they included Andrew Neil, the presenter of the BBC’s flagship Daily Politics current affairs television programme. Neil O’Brien, the director of the “no” campaign, said: “I don’t think it is a huge secret that Andrew Neil is a sceptic on Europe.”

There were calls from pro-European Labour MPs for the BBC to examine the “impartiality and independence” of the veteran journalist, who has recently been appointed to oversee the antics of Boris Johnson at The Spectator magazine.

Chris Bryant, the chairman of the Labour Movement for Europe, said: “The BBC has already stopped its journalists writing columns which express political opinions. Perhaps it is also appropriate for the corporation to consider if presenters should attend fundraising dinners for organisations such as this.”

Mr Neil said: “I was there as a journalist, I did not pay a penny for my ticket and I did not participate in the auction. My BBC contract prevents me from giving any money to political parties or organisations, but I attend lots of these events as guests of other people. I look forward to going to the ‘vote yes’ campaign dinner, not to mention the ‘vote maybe’ campaign dinner.”

THE EUROSCEPTICS’ CELEBRITY FRIENDS

Luke Johnson: entrepreneurial son of Paul Johnson, the right-wing columnist, he transformed PizzaExpress before taking charge of The Ivy and Le Caprice. Last week he said restaurant critics were “spiteful, corrupt and feeble alcoholics, driven by ego, envy and free meals”

Sir Frank Williams: Chief of BMW-Williams Formula One motor racing team. A car crash in 1986 left him paralysed from the neck down. His personal wealth is estimated at £76 million.

Marco Pierre White: Michelin-decorated chef who retired in 1999 and now runs restaurants including Mirabelle in Mayfair. Criticised celebrity chefs for spending more time on TV than in the kitchen.

Lynton Crosby: The Australian strategist, who helped John Howard to win four victories over Labor down under, has been recruited by the Tories to run their election campaign. His presence will be seen as fresh evidence that the Tories will emphasise their anti—EU credentials next year

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