Major U-Turn As Keir Starmer Says He Will No Longer Accept Clothes From Donors

Keir Starmer will no longer accept clothes from Labour donors, party sources have confirmed.

The decision is a major U-turn by the prime minister, who had defended accepting thousands of pounds worth of suits and glasses from Lord Alli.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves and deputy prime minister Angela Rayner will also no longer accept clothes as gifts, senior Labour figures confirmed.

Starmer has come in for fierce criticism after it emerged Lord Alli, a Labour peer and millionaire, had given him £16,435 of work clothing and glasses worth £2,400 before the election, as well as £5,000-worth of clothes for the PM’s wife, Victoria.

Asked about it earlier this week, the prime minister insisted that the donations had been within the rules and properly declared – but dodged questions on why he had not paid for his own clothes.

He said: “It’s very important to me that the rules are followed. I’ve always said that. I said that before the election, I’ve reinforced it after the election.

“And that’s why, shortly after the election, my team reached out for advice on what declaration should be made so it’s in accordance with the rules. They then sought out for further advice more recently, as a result of which they made the relevant declarations.”

It was also revealed on Friday that Rayner had received clothing worth £3,500 from Lord Alli, while Reeves has accepted donations of £7,500 from another Labour supporter, Juliet Rosenfeld, to pay for clothing.

HuffPost UK understands that Starmer, Rayner and Reeves have all now agreed to pay for their own clothes in future.

The move is an attempt by Labour to finally draw a line under the controversy as the party gathers in Liverpool for its annual conference.