Starmer won’t ban ministers from accepting hospitality – despite ‘freebies’ row
Sir Keir Starmer will not ban ministers from accepting hospitality despite the “freebies” scandal that threatened to derail his first few months in office.
In an updated version of the ministerial code, members of the Government will reportedly be told they can keep taking handouts as long as they are properly declared.
However, they will be ordered to take public perception into account, as No 10 seeks to avoid a repeat of the row that engulfed Sir Keir’s early premiership.
The rules on frequency and detail of declarations will also be brought into line with the expectations for MPs, with the existing quarterly register replaced with a monthly version and a new requirement for ministers to state the value of any gifts they accept.
The “freebies” row exploded just weeks after Sir Keir took his seat in No 10, with Downing Street buried by an avalanche of bad press about the handouts that he and his Cabinet had raked in from donors and businesses.
The mounting disclosures drove one of his MPs, Rosie Duffield, to quit the party with a broadside at the “sleaze, nepotism and apparent avarice”.
In an attempt to stem the backlash, the Prime Minister paid back more than £6,000 of gifts, including six Taylor Swift tickets, four Doncaster racing tickets and clothing loaned to his wife.
No 10 also announced plans to publish a new code of conduct for ministers, which would equalise expectations for those in government and opposition.
According to The Times, the new rulebook will stop short of banning ministers from accepting gifts and hospitality, but instruct them to consider the public’s expectations when doing so.
The newspaper said the Government had considered a total ban but decided to take a softer line after industry groups warned against it.
The new code will also reportedly give the Prime Minister’s independent adviser the power to initiate their own misconduct investigations.
As it stands, hospitality received by ministers “in a ministerial capacity” is published by departments on a quarterly basis, and does not include the value of the benefit.
In contrast, anything accepted “as an MP”, should be declared by individual politicians in the MPs’ register of interests within 28 days, and must include the cost.
Labour has already announced that the reforms to the code will include closing this “loophole”, which the party claimed created an uneven playing field between the previous government and the opposition.
Downing Street has been approached for comment.