Starmer Faces Possible Probe Over Labour Donor’s Gifts to Wife
(Bloomberg) -- UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has come under fire for failing to declare gifts from millionaire Labour donor Waheed Alli, a breach of parliamentary rules.
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Alli — a TV mogul who was named the Labour Party’s chair of general election fundraising in 2022 — paid for a personal shopper as well as designer garments and alterations for Victoria Starmer, the Sunday Times reported. The prime minister may now face an investigation into the breach, the newspaper said.
The relationship between Alli and Labour has been under scrutiny since the Times revealed the donor had a Downing Street security pass and used it to entertain donors. Bloomberg News also reported earlier this month Alli has been making recommendations for public appointments, prompting party staff to raise concerns over the appearance of a conflict of interest.
The latest report is providing ammunition for opponents of the prime minister, with Shadow Home Secretary James Cleverly accusing Starmer — who sought to draw a contrast between his party with the chaos and scandals seen under previous Tory governments — of “hypocrisy.”
“If like Keir Starmer, you have been really aggressive in your criticism of Conservatives for this, then you’ve got to make sure that you are totally above reproach, and he’s failed to do that,” Cleverly, who’s one of the candidates running for leader of the Conservative Party, said on Sky News Sunday.
“It’s absolutely legitimate that we point out the hypocrisy of someone who basically got his job by criticizing others for what he’s now doing,” he added.
Foreign Secretary David Lammy defended the prime minister on Sky News, saying that unlike in the US where tax payer money is allocated for the clothing of presidents and first ladies, British prime ministers, leaders of the opposition and their wives have typically relied on donors to pay for clothes.
Some of Alli’s gifts were declared, namely £18,685 ($24,500) worth of work clothes as well as several pairs of glasses to the Labour leader over the past year, according to the Times. He also spent £20,000 on accommodation for Starmer during the election.
However, the clothes given to Victoria Starmer had not been previously reported and Downing Street had sought advice about what declarations it may have needed to make in relation to the prime minister’s wife, the newspaper said.
“This is not a transparency issue, it is actually the prime minister seeking to comply with the rules,” Lammy added.
Starmer promised in a speech in January to wage a “total crackdown on cronyism” if his party got back into government. He has repeatedly pledged to restore confidence in politicians after ousting the Conservatives in the July 4 elections.
The revelations could further hurt Starmer’s popularity, which has dropped since the elections following a series of “painful” decisions taken by his administration.
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