Angela Rayner’s previous criticism of Boris Johnson has come back to haunt her this morning, after she potentially broke parliamentary rules by failing to declare a key fact about her Lord Alli-funded holiday.
It’s been revealed that Ms Rayner did not tell the House of Commons that a friend accompanied her on a “personal holiday” to Lord Alli’s $2.5 million Manhattan apartment.
The friend in question was then-MP Sam Tarry, something that should have been disclosed to the House of Commons’ sleaze body.
The rules state that MPs must declare foreign trips which they, or anyone connected to them, enjoy if a donor pays for “part or all” of it as a result of their “parliamentary or political activities”.
Ms Rayner almost didn’t declare the freebie stay at all, according to The Times, as she felt Lord Alli had granted her the luxury stay because they are personal friends, rather than because she was a senior politician.
Ms Rayner did not declare a key detail about a Lord Alli-funded holiday (Image: Getty)
It is understood Ms Rayner arrived on her own before being joined by Mr Tarry, who spent New Year’s Eve there.
While she eventually decided to fess up to the trip in her official register of interests, she did not mention Mr Tarry.
Ms Rayner’s team also argued that Mr Tarry did not need to be reported as Lord Alli was not aware he had joined the deputy Labour leader on the trip.
The Deputy Prime Minister has now been hoisted onto her own petard, however, as previous criticism of Boris Johnson’s donor-funded holidays came to light.
In 2021, Ms Rayner highlighted a story about Boris Johnson receiving a holiday in the Caribbean, adding: “The public have a right to know who paid for his luxury holiday, how much they paid for it and what they might expect in return for their generosity.”
Ms Rayner spent New Year’s Eve in Lord Alli’s Manhattan apartment (Image: Getty)
Only yesterday, Ms Rayner told The Guardian: “Look, the donations rules apply to all of us. Keir is really clear that you have to disclose when you’ve had donations.”
She added: “I do think the rules matter.”
Last night a Conservative Party spokesman said: “This is a shocking revelation.
“Not only has Rayner been living the high life with a free holiday paid for by a donor it appears she has breached the rules by failing to be transparent with her declaration.
“Rayner must come clean immediately.
“This is yet another example of one rule for Labour and one rule for everyone else. Whilst Labour are living a life of luxury they’re making 10 million pensioners choose between heating and eating.
“It must be hard for those being hit by their cruel cuts to listen to Labour politicians refusing to believe taking hundreds of thousands of pounds in gifts is just not fair.”
Both Ms Rayner and Mr Tarry declined to comment.
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Keir Starmer’s at it again helping himself to another freebie as £170k Sue Gray joins him
Sir Keir Starmer faces fresh questions over his free football tickets after he attended the North London derby last weekend between Arsenal and Tottenham.
It has emerged that the Prime Minister brought along his foreign secretary David Lammy and his chief of staff Sue Gray as they all enjoyed lavish hospitality tickets at Tottenham Hotspur’s White Hart Lane stadium.
The tickets, paid for by Tottenham, have raised eyebrows after they placed Sir Keir and his allies next to a controversial and powerful football lobbyist who fought for the much-hated breakaway Super League.
Katie Perrior sat next to Sue Gray, who has been at the centre of her own crisis in Downing Street over her alleged acrimonious relationships with senior colleagues.
Ms Perrior is the founder and chair of iNHouse Communications, which worked on the attempt to launch the European Super League. The lobbyist’s firm also helps advise Google, who have been criticised for their legal tax avoidance.
Lammy took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share a photograph of himself and Sir Keir (Image: X/DAVID LAMMY)
Keir Starmer has accepted almost £40,000 worth of free tickets for football matches (Image: Getty)
Spurs were one of the six English clubs that launched an audacious bid to leave the Premier League for the new elite league in April 2021 – before fan backlash forced each club to back down.
While Ms Perrior sat next to the powerful government officials, there is no suggestion that she used the match as an opportunity to lobby ministers.
However, the timing of the photographs of the British PM and his allies hobnobbing with lobbyists makes it even more shameful for the government.
It took place just hours after allegations emerged surrounding Sir Keir and his wife, Victoria, taking donations for clothes from a Labour mega-donor, Lord Alli.
Sir Keir is hoping to have drawn a line under the scandal on the eve of the Labour Party conference
At the time, David Lammy boasted about the tickets, taking to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share a photograph of himself and Sir Keir. He posted: “The boss’ team won this time against the run of play, but it’s still early in the season.”
Underneath the X post, dozens of users can be seen asking: “Who paid for the tickets?”
Sir Keir has endured a nightmare past week as he has tried to defend himself for accepting more than £100,000 of freebies and gifts over the last parliament.
This includes almost £40,000 worth of free tickets for football matches, which potentially risks a conflict of interest as the government prepares to bring in a new regulator opposed by the industry.
Senior Tory MP John Glen told the Daily Mail: “Is there no freebie that Sir Keir will not take? His behaviour is as hypocritical as it is incredible. And in view of Labour’s plans for a new football regulator, his presence and that of Sue Gray is a clear conflict of interest.”
Tory MP Ben Obese-Jecty added: “Keir Starmer pledged to crack down on lobbying yet he seems comfortable to be lobbied if it affords him privileged access to watch Premier League football.
“For the governance of our national game to be agreed by the PM via informal meetings in VIP boxes over prawn sandwiches, with Sue Gray again shaping policy and without Civil Service oversight, should be a huge concern to football fans across the country.”
Sir Keir and his team are hoping to have drawn a line under the scandal on the eve of the Labour Party conference after announcing yesterday that they will no longer take donations for clothes.
