A week is a long time in politics. Keir Starmer began the week sending out his senior ministers to defend his decision to accept donations of clothing for both himself and his wife Lady Victoria Starmer from Waheed Alli, the Labour peer. On Sunday, David Lammy, the Foreign Secretary, suggested these donations were necessary, for lack of a special clothing budget so the pair could make Britain proud on the world stage. The Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds later took the line when asked about the wider freebies Starmer received (more than £100,000 worth of them), that this was simply part of the job.
However, Downing Street has now changed tack. This evening No. 10 sources have said that Starmer, Angela Rayner and Rachel Reeves will no longer accept clothing donations. It comes after the Financial Times reported that both the Deputy Prime Minister and Chancellor had also accepted thousands of pounds worth of clothing from donors. The hope in government of course is that this announcement will bring ‘wardrobe-gate’ to an end and not allow the row to drag into Labour conference which kick starts tomorrow in Liverpool. However, headlines saying the Prime Minister will now buy his own clothes aren’t exactly ideal.
Headlines saying the Prime Minister will now buy his own clothes aren’t exactly ideal.
The decision also comes after some criticism within Labour. The Labour grandee Harriet Harman said on her Sky podcast that Starmer trying to justify the freebies was making it worse: ‘It’s not a hanging offence, but I think doubling down and trying to justify it is making things worse.’ The question is whether this decision just leads for calls for Starmer to go even further. For example, should he now return the clothes he took previously? Surely the fact that he won’t take any more clothing donations suggests that there was something not quite right about accepting the initial donations? The line previously was that there was nothing to see here as all rules were followed.
The most immediate risk is the message it sends. This row has been running for weeks, intensifying this week when it emerged that Starmer had taken more freebies than any other MP. Although they had already been declared, the Alli donations meant that previously announced gifts took on a new meaning. Now it seems that under pressure Downing Street will change tack. It means Starmer could be pushed into going further on rules around donations and gifts. Given he previously pitched himself as a Mr Rules type figure who would clean up politics, he faces high expectations from the media and voters. In the meantime, those ministers who went out this week and defended him are likely to question whether it was really worth their time. They might think twice the next time they are asked to go out and bat for their boss.
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