Keir Starmer being investigated under MPs' conduct rules over football tickets - The Telegraph

1. Keir Starmer being investigated under MPs' conduct rules over football tickets  The Telegraph
2. Keir Starmer faces inquiry over alleged breaches of MPs’ code of conduct  The Guardian
3. Starmer apologises for 'administrative errors' as parliamentary watchdog probe revealed  Sky News
4. UK parliament's standards watchdog investigates opposition Labour leader  Reuters.com
5. Keir Starmer investigated over potential Commons earnings and gift rule breaches  The Independent

Keir Starmer investigated for not declaring Premier League tickets on time

Labour leader referred to parliamentary standards commissioner as he insists he did not break MPs’ code of conduct

Sir Keir Starmer is being investigated by the parliamentary commissioner for standards over multiple failures to register on time gifts of Premier League football tickets and book royalties.

The Labour leader is facing an inquiry for failing to declare within the time limit free hospitality he received from Crystal Palace in April and Watford in May worth more than £2,000, The Telegraph understands. The tickets came from the clubs themselves.

The book fees under investigation are linked to two copyright payments for law books written by Sir Keir, one of £135.78 and another of £317.23.

The late registration of a ticket worth £522 to the British Kebab Awards in Oct 2021 and given to a member of Sir Keir’s staff may also be investigated.

Sir Keir has apologised to Kathryn Stone, the parliamentary standards commissioner, for “administrative errors in his office”, but has said he is “absolutely confident” that he had not broken the MPs’ code of conduct.


The sums are small, but it will be embarrassing for the Labour leader that payments were not declared within 28 days, given his ongoing attacks on Boris Johnson for his chaotic rule in Downing Street.

Allies have sought to portray the Labour leader as “Mr Rules” in contrast to Mr Johnson’s behaviour. The new inquiry is untimely given that Sir Keir is currently being investigated by Durham Constabulary over an alleged breach of Covid rules. He has promised to quit if fined.

The Prime Minister, despite receiving a fixed penalty notice for a birthday party in Downing Street, has refused to resign.

In a further development on Monday night, a Conservative MP wrote to Ms Stone asking the watchdog to investigate “potential breaches” of the code of conduct over the receipt of £25,000 for “legal advice given before 2020” and prior to his election as Labour leader.

Alexander Stafford, the Conservative MP for Rother Valley, said that the payments declared in the register of members’ financial interests failed to “disclose the source of this money, or indeed the ultimate client”. He claimed this was a breach of the rules.

The Crystal Palace vs Arsenal game was a gift for Sir Keir for two people to attend the directors’ box on April 4 and was worth £720. It was registered a month and a day after being received.

Sir Keir, who continues to regularly play five-a-side football, is a keen Arsenal supporter. Arsenal lost the match 3-0, a result that derailed their attempt to finish fourth in the league.

The Watford gift was for four tickets for the Watford vs Arsenal match on March 6 and was worth £1,416. It was registered two months later on May 6, again outside the 28-day limit. Arsenal won the game 3-2.

A Labour source told the PA news agency that the investigation centres on a number of “slightly late” declarations and that Sir Keir insisted he is confident he has not broken the rules.

Keir Starmer, right, is currently being investigated by Durham Constabulary over the beergate gathering in April 2021

During a visit to Wakefield ahead of the by-election there, he told broadcasters that the allegations were not a surprise, adding: “My office is dealing with it and will be replying in due course.”

Asked if he was sure he had done nothing wrong, he said: “Absolutely confident. There’s no problem here.”

Sir Keir’s spokesman said: “Keir Starmer takes his declaration responsibilities very seriously and has already apologised for the fact that administrative errors in his office have led to a small number of late declarations.

“The Standards Commissioner has asked for more information which we are happy to provide.”
What does the MPs’ code of conduct state?

The matters relate to the section of the MPs’ code which states: “Members shall fulfil conscientiously the requirements of the House in respect of the registration of interests in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests.

“They shall always be open and frank in drawing attention to any relevant interest in any proceeding of the House or its committees, and in any communications with ministers, members, public officials or public office holders.”

The rules on employment and earnings say that MPs must register payments of more than £100 which they receive for work outside the Commons.

Under the section on gifts and hospitality, they must register benefits worth more than £300, or multiple benefits from the same source if they exceed that value in a calendar year.

  

Starmer apologises for 'administrative errors' as parliamentary watchdog probe revealed

The "errors" are understood to relate to football tickets and book payments received by the Labour leader which were declared late.

Sir Keir Starmer has apologised for "administrative errors" after it emerged that he was being investigated over potential breaches of parliamentary rules on earnings and gifts.

A spokesperson for the Labour leader said the errors had led to "a small number of late declarations". These were understood to relate to hospitality such as football tickets as well as book payments.


During a visit to Wakefield, Sir Keir said that the allegations were not a surprise. Asked if he was sure he had done nothing wrong, he said: "Absolutely confident, there's no problem here."

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The Labour leader is being investigated by Kathryn Stone, the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, under two sections of the MPs' rules of conduct on registering interests, the parliamentary website shows.

The investigation was opened last Wednesday.

According to the parliamentary website, one strand of the probe is looking at the registration of interests under the section on employment and earnings while a second concerns a possible breach of the section concerning gifts, benefits and hospitality from UK sources.

A spokesperson for the Labour leader said: "Keir Starmer takes his declaration responsibilities very seriously and has already apologised for the fact that administrative errors in his office have led to a small number of late declarations.

"The Standards Commissioner has asked for more information which we are happy to provide."

Under parliamentary rules on employment and earnings, MPs must register payments of more than £100 which they receive for work outside the Commons.

For gifts and hospitality, they must register benefits worth more than £300, or multiple benefits from the same source if they exceed that value in a calendar year.

The register of interests for Sir Keir includes two copyright payments for books written before his election to parliament as well as an £18,450 advance from publisher HarperCollins for a book he is writing.

Details of the probe have emerged at a time when Sir Keir is separately being investigated by police over whether COVID-19 rules were broken during an evening in Durham in April 2021 when he was filmed having a drink and a curry was ordered.

British Labour Party leader Keir Starmer arrives for a lunch reception at London's Guildhall as celebrations for the Queen's Platinum Jubilee continue, in London, Britain, June 3, 2022. REUTERS/Hannah McKay


LONDON, June 13 (Reuters) - British opposition Labour leader Keir Starmer is being investigated by parliament's standards commissioner over whether he broke the rules on registering his earnings and gifts.

An update to the parliament website on Monday showed an investigation was opened into Starmer on June 8. It did not provide further details.

Members of parliament are required to declare their external financial interests, such as fees or expenses paid for employment away from their role as a member of parliament, as well as gifts or hospitality they receive.

"Keir Starmer takes his declaration responsibilities very seriously and has already apologised for the fact that administrative errors in his office have led to a small number of late declarations," a spokesperson for Starmer said.

"The standards commissioner has asked for more information which we are happy to provide."

Starmer said he was "absolutely confident" he had done nothing wrong.

"There's no problem here," he told reporters.

Sir Keir Starmer has come under investigation by the parliamentary standards commissioner for potentially breaching Commons rules on earnings and gifts.

The Labour leader is being investigated under paragraph 14 of the parliamentary code of conduct, which covers the registration of MPs’ interests and the matter of being “open and frank” in such declarations.

The commissioner’s webpage, which announced the investigations on Monday, lists two matters for which Sir Keir is under investigation.


The first refers to “the registration of interests under category 1 of the Guide to the Rules”, which refers to MPs’ outside employment and earnings.

The second refers to “registration of interests under category 3 of the Guide to the Rules”, which refers to gifts, benefits and hospitality received by MPs from UK sources.





The Labour leader is one of three MPs currently under investigation by the standards commissioner. The other two are Andrew Bridgen, a Tory MP who is under investigation for alleged paid advocacy – or lobbying – as well as matters relating to his declaration of interests.

Another Conservative MP, Chris Philp, is also being investigated by the watchdog over possible improper use of his parliamentary email address.

It is unclear at this stage what exactly Sir Keir’s standards investigation relates to. He has previously registered significant outside earnings for legal work before becoming party leader.

Asked to respond to the news during a broadcast interview, Sir Keir said: “That’s an investigation that we’ll be responding to in due course.”

When he was asked what the investigation was about, he replied: “I’ll need to talk to my office about that, but we’ll be responding in due course.”


The Labour leader was asked whether the news had taken him by surprise, and responded: “No.”

Asked when he was made aware of the investigation, he replied: “All MPs are made aware of there any any concerns, and my office is dealing with it, and we’ll be replying in due course.”

He added that he was “Absolutely confident,” adding: “There’s no problem here.”

Parliament’s register of interests appears to show that Sir Keir has logged some of his outside earnings and hospitality later than the 28-day deadline all MPs must stick to.

These six late entries include royalties from his books and tickets to football games, and have a total value of £3,303.01.

The opposition leader has in recent months strongly criticised Boris Johnson for rule-breaking during lockdown, gaining political ground over the issue.

But the opposition leader last month received a questionnaire from Durham police over allegations that he too broke lockdown laws while on the campaign trail there last year. That police investigation, along with the investigation launched by the parliamentary standards commissioner, is yet to conclude.

Mr Johnson was meanwhile handed a £50 fixed penalty notice for breaching rules at Downing Street. He refused to resign, and also survived a no-confidence vote from his own MPs. Sir Keir has promised to resign if he is fined for any breach.

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