Sir Keir Starmer, leader of the opposition Labor Party in the UK, is under investigation for allegedly breaching parliamentary rules on declarations of profits and external gifts.
Parliamentary Rules Commissioner Kathryn Stone announced on Monday that an investigation into Starmer had been launched last week for two possible breaches of MPs’ codes of conduct.
Members must register all external payments in excess of £ 100 for work outside the House of Commons, as well as any gift in excess of this limit within 28 days.
According to the parliament’s website, Starmer is investigating two sections of the code: declarations of foreign income and employment, and the registration of external gifts, benefits and hospitality.
Starmer’s last entry in the members’ interest record indicates that he received four hospitality tickets valued at £ 532 for a Tottenham Hotspur football match against Arsenal. He has been a lifelong supporter of this latest North London team.
He also received an advance payment of £ 18,450 from HarperCollins for a book that is expected to explain his political philosophy. Starmer has pledged to donate the proceeds to charities.
A senior Labor Party official said Stone’s investigation referred to these two elements, which his office accepts were registered later than necessary. The official said Starmer had “nothing to hide” from his statements.
Speaking to reporters on a visit to Wakefield ahead of a crucial parliamentary election next week, Starmer said he was “absolutely confident” that “there is no problem here.” He added: “My office is working on this and will respond in due course.”
In a follow-up statement, Starmer’s office apologized for “a small number of late statements,” accusing him of “administrative errors.” He said Starmer “takes his statement very seriously”, adding that “the rules commissioner has asked for more information which we are happy to provide”.
Starmer is also under investigation by Durham police over whether Covid-19 rules were violated at a campaign event in April 2021. The so-called “beergate” scandal arose after he was photographed. enjoying a bottle of beer at the event. He has promised to resign if the police sanction him.
Both investigations run the risk of tarnishing Starmer’s image as a diligent follower of the rules, after he often attacked Prime Minister Boris Johnson for his investigations into the party scandal and political donations.
Stone did not provide further details of his investigation into Starmer. Two other MPs are facing investigations into whether they breached parliamentary rules: Chris Philp, junior culture minister, and Conservative MP Andrew Bridgen. Stone has often dismissed previous investigations.