ReutersPrime Minister Sir Keir Starmer received an extra £16,000 worth of clothes from Labor peer Lord Ali, it has been revealed.
Donate, First reported by the British Guardianwas initially announced as funding for his private office as leader of the opposition.
The gifts – £10,000 in October 2023 and £6,000 in February this year – were declared on time but will now be reclassified as donations of clothing.
The reclassification comes after Downing Street sought advice on the donations.
Sir Keir insists he has always adhered to donation rules.
The prime minister, her deputy Angela Rayner and finance minister Rachel Reeves said they would no longer accept clothing donations.
last week, Sir Keir told the BBC He accepted donations of clothing from the opposition during a “hectic campaign”.
“Please understand that I will not make any more clothing-related statements,” he said.
Controversy over donations has dogged Sir Keir’s government since Labour’s landslide election victory in July.
Lord Ali, a regular donor to the Labor leader, has been at the center of controversy since it emerged in August that he had been given a temporary security pass from Downing Street despite having no formal government role.
The TV executive donated £16,000 to Sir Keir for clothing and £2,485 for pairs of glasses.
The Prime Minister also argued that he accepted £20,000 worth of accommodation from Lord Ali during the campaign so that his son could revise for his GCSE exams at home without the influence of the media.
The SNP has called for an investigation into Lord Ali’s donations to the Prime Minister and Labor MPs.
In a letter to the House of Commons and House of Lords standards committees, Sir Laurie Magnus, the independent adviser on ministerial interests, and Simon Keyes, the cabinet secretary, and SNP MP Brendan O’Hara said the disclosures had been “Becoming Sir Keir Starmer’s version of the expenses scandal”.
O’Hara said that unless the matter was “fully investigated”, “damaging leaks will inevitably continue to erode public trust”.
The opening of Labour’s annual conference last week was overshadowed by a row over donations and freebies.
The Prime Minister is not the only MP to receive freebies over the past year.
Many sitting MPs from all parties in the House of Commons list free tickets to sporting and cultural events on their register of interests.
