Tory co-treasurer Peter Cruddas quits over cash for access claim In a statement Mr Cruddas said: "I only took up the post of principal Treasurer of the Party at the beginning of the month and was keen to meet anyone potentially interested in donating. As a result, and without consulting any politicians or senior officials in the party, I had an initial conversation. No further action was taken by the party. However, I deeply regret any impression of impropriety arising from my bluster in that conversation. Clearly there is no question of donors being able to influence policy or gain undue access to politicians. Specifically, it was categorically not the case that I could offer, or that David Cameron would consider, any access as a result of a donation. Similarly, I have never knowingly even met anyone from the number ten policy unit. But in order to make that clear beyond doubt, I have regrettably decided to resign with immediate effect. The claims threaten to restart the row over party political funding, which have currently hit an impasse after years of negotiations. Expert said there was now a greater chance of some form of state funding for political parties to come in. Mr Cruddas, who is the founder of Currency Management Consultants, was appointed co-treasurer by the Tories in June 2011. In secretly filmed footage Mr Cruddas is heard apparently discussing what access different size donations might get at various levels of the party. "Two hundred grand to 250 is Premier League... what you would get is, when we talk about your donations the first thing we want to do is get you at the Cameron/Osborne dinners," he allegedly says. You do really pick up a lot of information and when you see the Prime Minister, you're seeing David Cameron, not the Prime Minister. But within that room everything is confidential - you can ask him practically any question you want. If you're unhappy about something, we will listen to you and put it into the policy committee at number 10 - we feed all feedback to the policy committee. Reports claimed Mr Cruddas offered access even though he knew the "money" would come from a fund in based in Liechtenstein that was not allowed to make donations under UK electoral law. A Tory spokesman said: "No donation was ever accepted or even formally considered by the Conservative Party. All donations to the Conservative Party have to comply with the requirements of electoral law. These are strictly enforced by our compliance department. Unlike the Labour Party, where union donations are traded for party policies, donations to the Conservative Party do not buy party or government policy. We will urgently investigate any evidence to the contrary. Reports claimed meetings with Mr Cameron and other senior Tory figures were available at both 10 Downing street and Chequers, the Prime Minister's official country residence in Buckinghamshire. Mr Cruddas was said to have alleged that attendance at dinners with Mr Cameron earns the Conservative party some £5million a year. Mr Cruddas is said to have amassed a £750million fortune through spread betting, is a member of the party's ruling board as well as being a co-treasurer. Mr Cameron said in 2010 that political lobbying was the "next big scandal" waiting to happen in the wake of the MPs' expenses scandal uncovered by The Telegraph the previous year.