Reeves Blows Up Starmer’s Football Freebie Excuse as Ministers Take £10,000 in Hospitality Last Month – Guido Fawkes

Reeves Blows Up Starmer’s Football Freebie Excuse as Ministers Take £10,000 in Hospitality Last Month

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Reeves said this morning of her Sabrina Carpenter concert tickets:

“For security reasons, I did take a ticket in a box… I don’t have any intention of doing this again… If it’s related to my job and it’s something that I need to do in my job, like I’m going to a formal dinner or a formal event, of course you have to accept hospitality. But, look, I went with a family member. I’m not intending to take concert tickets in the future.”

The line is: It was needed for security, but I won’t do it again. That leaves Starmer in a difficult position…

The PM has personally accepted £4250 worth of private donations since he paid back the £6,000 of freebies he got since the election. All of those are football games and £4,000 is made up of Directors’ Box tickets for Arsenal fixtures. Downing Street’s justification is that “given security advice, the club has said it will find seats for my son and I in the directors’ box whenever practicable.” Reeves’ explanation for her box at Sabrina Carpenter is the same, though the Chancellor has gone further to say even that is not a suitable justification…

Since the first freebie scandal which ended with updated rules for ministerial donations Yvette Cooper has declared £3555 of personal freebies, Peter Kyle £560, Rayner £350, and Reeves £600. Last month alone the Labour frontbench declared £10,329 of hospitality on the separate ministerial register , a whopping £4,445 of which was declared by one Chris Bryant. Bryant took tickets to the BAFTAs, Oedipus at the Old Vic, and Richard II at the Bridge Theatre, among others. Vital work…

By saying she won’t take concert tickets again in future Reeves has set a new standard for Labour. Will Starmer or other ministers take leisure freebies in the future?