Minister glosses over damage from Labours freebies furore saying Keir Starmer hasnt broken rules - but admits she might pay back Proms ticket gift

A minister today played down the damage from the freebies furore engulfing Keir Starmer insisting the government is incredibly busy.

Sarah Jones dodged on whether the PMs personal standing had been hit by the row as she toured broadcast studios this morning.

Asked on Sky News how she felt about the situation after Sir Keir dramatically announced last night that he was paying back more than £6,000, the business minister said: Were having a look again and look, were 12 weeks into this government, were incredibly busy ending the doctors strike, making sure were setting up the industrial strategy… 

Ms Jones stressed that the government was worried about the lack of trust in politicians more widely but it was something the PM is addressing.

Were a new government, were always worried, and Keirs main item in the speech he made at conference was the lack of trust people have in politicians, she said.

We need to do more to make sure people trust politicians because politics can be a force for good. That is the whole driving value of what Keir Starmer is about.

Pressed again on whether the row had damaged Sir Keir, the MP insisted he was not worried about his own popularity. 

She said: I think hes doing the right thing... clearly this has been a big story in the news...

He will do the right thing as always. He has not broken any rules.

Ms Jones also said she was looking at whether she could pay back the cost of a free ticket to the Proms she received from the BBC.  

Business minister Sarah Jones dodged on whether the PMs personal standing had been hit by the row as she toured broadcast studios this morning

Sir Keir Starmer has paid back more than £6,000 worth of gifts - including Taylor Swift tickets and a clothing deal for his wife - in a bid to move on from a donations row

The PM and his wife Victoria attended a Taylor Swift gig at Wembley Stadium in June

Lady Starmer donned a £1,100 dress by Edeline Lee at Labours conference in Liverpool last month. The brand said it had loaned the garment and matching shoes to the PMs wife

The PMs wife also wore an Edeline Lee outfit at the designers event during London Fashion Week last month

Sir Keir and his wife were pictured at Doncaster Racecourse on September 14

Sir Keirs announcement that he is paying back some of his gifts coincided with the publication of an update to his register of interests

Sir Keir abruptly announced last night that he was paying back more than £6,000 worth of gifts - including Taylor Swift tickets and a clothing deal for his wife - in a bid to quell the backlash.

The PM is covering the £3,398 cost of six Taylor Swift tickets, four tickets to the races and a rental agreement with a high-end designer favoured by Lady Victoria Starmer.

The move came after he was dubbed free gear Keir over his frequent acceptance of lavish gifts and hospitality, which he has continued since entering Downing Street in July.

Following a backlash, the PM has committed to overhauling rules for ministers to ensure better transparency about what is provided.

His announcement that he is paying back some of his gifts coincided with the publication of an update to the MPs register of interests.

It also came shortly after it was disclosed that one of his top donors, Lord Waheed Alli, is being probed by a House of Lords watchdog over alleged non-registration of interests.

The House of Lords Commissioners for Standards said the millionaire businessman was being investigated over possible breaches of peers code of conduct.

But it is understood the probe does not relate to donations and instead is a clerical element of already declared interests.

Gifts paid for by Sir Keir include four Taylor Swift tickets from Universal Music Group totalling £2,800 and two from the Football Association at a cost of £598 as well as four to Doncaster Races from Arena Racing Corporation at £1,939.

An £839 clothing rental agreement with Edeline Lee, the designer recently worn by his wife to London Fashion Week, along with one hour of hair and makeup, was also covered by the PM.

Sir Keir said yesterday that it was right for him to repay the donations while new principles for accepting gifts were drawn up.

Speaking at a press conference in Brussels, the PM said: We came in as a Government of change.

We are now going to bring forward principles for donations, because, until now, politicians have used their best individual judgment on a case-by-case basis.

I think we need some principles of general application. So, I took the position that until the principles are in place it was right for me to make those repayments.

Pressed on whether the repayments were an admission that he was wrong to accept the freebies, he said: I cant say more about it. Asked a third time, he said: I cant add anything more to what Ive said. 

A Downing Street spokesperson said: The PM has commissioned a new set of principles on gifts and hospitality to be published as part of the updated ministerial code.

Ahead of the publication of the new code, the PM has paid for several entries on his own register. This will appear in the next register of members interests.

The update to Sir Keirs register of interests revealed he accepted a further £6,134 from Lord Alli in clothing and personal support for Lady Starmer in June.

He also took £920 from Tottenham Hotspur stadium for two tickets to the north London derby in September, and £1,000 from Arsenal FC for a game in August.

The PM has previously defended his decision to accept hospitality in order to attend football matches, citing security concerns which prevent him from watching from the stands without an expensive police presence.

Ms Jones told Times Radio this morning: If I looked at me being an MP for seven years, been to three events – one Selhurst Park, one the Capital Radio Summertime Ball which the owners LBC invited me to, and one was to the Proms.

From a perspective of did I declare everything, was I doing this loads of times, was I kind of out and all the time taking freebies, was I giving anybody anything for these things? It was all completely above board.

But if I look at it through the lens that the public is now looking at it and the question were talking about, for what purpose Im going to those events, Im not going to go to another event like that that Im invited to.

Asked if she will pay it back, Ms Jones replied: Im not sure I could but I will certainly look at that, yeah. The issue of the Proms that Ive been to, I am just investigating whether I could pay that back.

The updated register of MPs interests also revealed:

• £2,300 worth of hospitality from Tottenham Hotspur FC accepted by Foreign Secretary David Lammy to watch the north London derby in September.
• £1,660 worth of tickets to a Taylor Swift concert at Wembley Stadium accepted from the Premier League by Liam Conlon, Labour MP and son of Sir Keirs chief of staff, Sue Gray, in August.
• £134,376.51 in donations declared by Tory leadership candidate Robert Jenrick, £152,000 by fellow contender Tom Tugendhat, £89,000 by James Cleverly and £40,000 by Kemi Badenoch from various backers.
• £836 declared by Angela Rayner for a spot in a DJ booth at nightclub Hi Ibiza, where the Deputy PM was filmed partying over the summer.

Lord Waheed Alli, pictured at last months Labour conference in Liverpool, is being probed by a House of Lords watchdog

The House of Lords Commissioners for Standards said the millionaire businessman was being investigated over possible breaches of peers code of conduct

Sir Keir recently defended using a house owned by Lord Alli for a video urging people to work from home during the Covid pandemic

Lord Alli recently found himself at the centre of the freebies row engulfing the PM, which has dogged Downing Street for weeks.

He is caught up in what has become known as wardrobegate after splurging thousands of pounds on suits and glasses for Sir Keir ahead of the general election.

The Labour peer was also revealed to have bought high-end clothing for Sir Keirs wife, Victoria, and provided free accommodation for the PM and his family.

His lavish gifts also extended to other senior Labour figures.

Lord Alli allowed Deputy PM Angela Rayner to stay in his plush New York apartment while on holiday, and he bankrolled a 40th birthday bash for Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson.

Under parliamentary rules, peers must register all their relevant interests and make sure any change in their relevant interests is registered within one month of the change. 

A new listing on the Commissioners website today stated: Lord Alli – Alleged non-registration of interests leading to potential breaches of paragraphs 14(a) and 17 of the thirteenth edition of the Code of Conduct for Members of the House of Lords.

It was reported last month by OpenDemocracy how Lord Alli only added his directorship in a British Virgin Islands-based firm to his register of interests after being asked why it was missing.

Lord Alli told the website the omission was an unintentional error, adding: I hadnt realised until you asked that it wasnt listed on my register of interests.

He now lists his directorship in MAC (BVI) Limited as a non-financial interest.

Lord Alli is a media tycoon who has been known in political circles for years and donated to Labour for more than two decades.

His donations to senior Labour figures includes £20,000 declared by Sir Keir for accommodation during the general election campaign.

The PM has said this was to allow his son to study for his GCSEs in peace at Lord Allis central London flat, while the Starmers family home was surrounded by media. 

Sir Keir recently defended using a house owned by Lord Alli for a video urging people to work from home during the Covid pandemic.

The PM said the idea it was his home was farcical, despite there being photos of his family and Christmas cards behind him during the recording, made in December 2021 during the Omicron variant wave.

Instead of it being recorded at Sir Keirs home in north London, it was filmed at Lord Allis flat in Covent Garden, central London. 

Lord Alli is a media tycoon who has been known in political circles for years and donated to Labour for more than two decades

Lord Alli allowed Deputy PM Angela Rayner (left) to stay in his plush New York apartment, and he bankrolled a 40th birthday bash for Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson (right)

Sir Keir has said the peer was motivated to help himself and other Cabinet ministers financially because he wanted Labour to win the election.

There is no suggestion that the PM or members of his Cabinet broke any rules in accepting freebies.

But there has been close scrutiny of Lord Allis links to Sir Keir after it emerged the Labour peer was given a No10 pass shortly after the partys election win, despite seemingly not having a Government role.

His pass has since been handed back but Sir Keir has continued to be dogged by the row also dubbed as passes for glasses.

Canterbury MP Rosie Duffield cited the freebies row as one of the reasons she resigned the Labour whip on Saturday in protest against the partys leadership.

Speaking at his press conference in Brussels yesterday, Sir Keir declined to comment on the probe into Lord Alli, saying it would run its course. 

But Tory leadership contender Robert Jenrick said: Another day, another story about alleged sleaze engulfing Sir Keir and the top of the Labour Party. He promised a government of service but all weve had so far is naked self-service.

The Prime Minister is one of the best-paid individuals in the country.

If he cant afford his clothes, how does he think pensioners on as little as £13,000 are able to cope without their winter fuel payments? He should clean up his act.

A Labour spokesman said: Lord Alli will cooperate fully with the Lords Commissioner and he is confident all interests have been registered.

We cannot comment further while this is ongoing.

A spokesman for the House of Lords said they did not comment on ongoing investigations.