A donation of £6,500 to the Conservative Party was made in the name of Southend's cash-strapped football club, it was revealed.
The Electoral Commission published a list of donations to political parties which included the cheque to Conservative head office which was received on November 10 last year and has been listed as coming from Southend United Football Club.
Southend United's deputy chairman Geoffrey King claimed the donation was made privately by the club's joint owner Ron Martin but a Tory party spokesman said it had been led to believe the donation came from the club itself.
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