Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has defended receiving £14,000 from a donor as the freebies row continues to overshadow Labour’s party conference.
Bridget Phillipson, Education Secretary, has defended her role in the freebies scandal (Image: Getty Images)
Lord Alli, who is embroiled in the scandal for his gifts to Sir Keir Starmer, donated the five-figure sum to the senior Government minister to “host a number of events”.
And Ms Phillipson admitted some of the cash was used to pay for a celebratory 40th birthday event held in December at the Hoare Memorial Hall.
The Government minister told Sky News she used the donation to pay for two events in a “professional… work context”, with attendees including representatives from the education sector, trade unions and political journalists.
Pushed to explain her own donations from Lord Alli – a television executive who has donated to Labour over the past 20 years – Ms Phillipson told Sky News’ Trevor Phillips: “It was used to fund two events, all of which was declared properly and thoroughly. That’s why that information is in the public domain.
Bridget Phillipson Minister for Women and Equalities of the United Kingdom at Labour conference (Image: Ian Vogler / Daily Mirror)
Britain’s Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson gives an interview on the first day of conference (Image: AFP via Getty Images)
“The first event was ahead of my birthday, so I was turning 40. I thought it was a good opportunity to get people together in a professional context, so it was journalists, trade unionists, education people, MPs and shadow cabinet.
“The second event was an event that I held also again for lobby journalists [and] for people in the education world as part of a reception. It was in a work context.”
She added that she celebrated her “actual 40th birthday” with her family, saying: “We went for a pizza. I celebrated with my kids.”
Asked whether senior Labour figures would hand the money back following the backlash, Ms Phillipson said: “Well, if they’ve declared it in line with the rules and they’ve followed [the rules], as very clearly they have, then I see no reason to do so.”
She added: “Look, the reason that we can have this conversation is because colleagues have followed the rules. I’ve followed the rules. I’ve set out in the register of interests what donations were [and] who they were from, and that’s there for the public to see.”
The minister said it was “frustrating” to have to discuss the row as Labour’s conference gets into full swing on Sunday, rather than “the wider agenda”, adding: “Of course, this is a distraction. I’d much rather be talking to you about bigger issues.
“But you know, I’m happy to set out our position very clearly.”
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner have confirmed they will no longer accept donations to pay for clothes.
This comes amid widespread fury over Sir Keir and his wife accepting donations.
The Prime Minister has accepted work clothing donations worth £16,200, and multiple pairs of glasses, to the value of £2,485, according to the MPs’ register of interests.
The register also shows Ms Rayner has accepted clothing donations, too, to the value of £2,230.
The Labour Deputy leader urged people not to forget scandals and division under the last Conservative government amid Labour’s own controversies over donations.
The Deputy Prime Minister denied she broke any rules over the donated use of a New York apartment owned by the Labour peer Lord Alli.
In her keynote speech on the first day of Labour’s annual party conference in Liverpool, Ms Rayner vowed her party would show “no complacency”.
“We won because we had the courage to change our party, the discipline to make hard decisions, and the determination to remain united,” she said.
“And now, change begins. Even now, especially now, there will be no complacency. Don’t forget where they did – partygate, Covid contracts, lies, division, scapegoating and the unfunded tax cuts for the rich that crashed our economy. Don’t forget any of it.
“The Tories failed Britain and tried to cover it up. A crater in the heart of Britain’s economy, a puncture in the pocket of every working family and a £22 billion black hole, and not as much an apology, let alone an acceptance, from the Tories.”
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Angela Rayner tears up as she takes centre stage moments after defending freebie holiday
Angela Rayner shed tears of joy as she kicked off the Labour Party Conference today. Her evident emotions were shown just minutes after it was revealed that a Labour donor footed the bill for her holiday in New York.
It is the latest in a series of “freebie” controversies to rock the party in recent days, with the deputy PM insisting she did not break any rules.
The Deputy Prime Minister took centre stage this morning to open the event in Liverpool, the first to coincide with the party being in power in 15 years.
Ms Rayner became emotional as she expressed gratitude to voters who supported the party in the July election, saying: “You entrusted us with the task of change, and we will not forget it.
“You kept faith with us, and we will keep faith with you.” She also took a swipe at Conservative MP and leadership challenger Kemi Badenoch, mentioning her feud with former Doctor Who actor David Tennant.
Angela Rayner appeared to become emotional at one point during her speech (Image: GETTY/PA)
Ms Badenoch previously branded Tennant a “bigot” after he criticised her stance on trans rights. Ms Rayner joked: “It was bad enough when they had to deal with Nigel Farage during the election, now she’s doing side deals with the Daleks!
“At least after three months as Shadow Housing Secretary, Kemi finally showed concern for a tenant. Shame it was David Tennant!”
Ms Rayner, Sir Keir Starmer, and Chancellor Rachel Reeves are facing significant scrutiny for their decision to accept donations of free clothes – something all three have no said they will no longer do.
The party already braced for a tough conference, as trade unions push for the reinstatement of universal winter fuel payments for pensioners, after the Government announced plans to means-test the £300 benefit, ruling an estimated 10 million people out.
Ms Rayner told attendees: “They thought our party was finished. But this year, Conference, we made history together. This wasn’t just a victory for Labour, but a triumph of our values.”
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner (Image: Getty Images)
The speech came as fresh scrutiny arose over Ms Rayner’s New Year trip to New York, paid for by a Labour donor, with reports revealing that her former partner Sam Parry joined her in a lavish £2million apartment on the 56th floor of a Manhattan building, which comes complete with gym, jacuzzi, and pool.
While Mr Tarry covered his own flight costs, he stayed in the accommodation provided by Lord Alli, whose donation of clothes to Sir Keir and his wife Victoria are already a source of considerable controversy.
Addressing the situation, Ms Rayner insisted that she followed the rules, described the trip as a “private holiday” and said she had disclosed the details out of an abundance of transparency, given Lord Alli’s status as both a friend and a donor.
On BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, she said, “I don’t believe I broke any rules.
“I disclosed the use of the apartment because I felt it was important to be transparent, even though it was a personal holiday.”
She also hit out at reports suggesting strife in Downing Street focused on Sue Gray, the Prime Minister’s chief of staff.
Leaks about Ms Gray’s £170,000 salary while other special advisers have seen their pay held down have contributed to reports of a fractious atmosphere within Number 10 less than three months after coming to power.
But Ms Rayner rejected what she described as a “caricature”, saying the Government was “really focused on making sure we deliver” and that Ms Gray was doing an “exceptional job”.
She added: “It angers me, as someone who has been a trade union rep in the past and who wants to bring workers’ rights, that somehow it’s OK to demonise workers in their workplace through the press and the media.”
The two rows risk overshadowing the party’s annual conference in Liverpool, with Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson acknowledging they were “frustrating” and “a distraction” for a party wishing to talk about its agenda in Government.
