Britain ends investigation into campaign finance

LONDON -- British prosecutors said yesterday that they would not charge anyone in a campaign finance inquiry in which former prime minister Tony Blair became the first sitting British head of government to be questioned by police in a criminal investigation.

The 16-month investigation turned up "insufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction," said Carmen Dowd, a top Crown Prosecution Service official, closing out the so-called cash-for-honors inquiry into allegations that Blair's government offered seats in the House of Lords and other perks in exchange for large loans to the ruling Labor Party.

The investigation was a significant factor, along with the Iraq war, in Blair's sharply declining popularity in the final year of a decade-long tenure that ended with his resignation last month. Blair, who was interviewed by police three times, consistently maintained that the allegations of sleaze in his administration were groundless.

Four people were arrested and released without charge in the matter, including Michael Levy, Blair's chief fund-raiser, and Ruth Turner, a close aide to the prime minister. Prosecutors said they had found no evidence of a coverup.