Sir Keir Starmer accepted a £20,000 donation for the use of a flat during the election after promising his family he would protect them.
The prime minister‘s register of interests shows a declaration for accommodation provided by Lord Waheed Alli to the value of £20,437.28 from 29 May to 13 July this year. The election was called on 22 May.
Sir Keir said in a Sky News interview on Wednesday he had “promised” his 16-year-old son he could get to his school and sit his exams without being disturbed.
The prime minister said he had made a pledge to his wife, son and daughter that he would “protect them”.
Sir Keir told political editor Beth Rigby that when the election was called ahead of the exam period, it meant there were “a lot of journalists” and also protesters “outside my front door”.
At this point the Labour leader told his son, who is 16, they would find somewhere he could “just study and get to school and back without having to go through all of that”.
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Sir Keir says it was after this that “someone” offered to make a flat “available” for the junior Starmer – but claimed “no money exchanged hands”.
“I wasn’t going to let my son fail or not do well in his GCSEs because of journalists outside the front door”, the father of two added.
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Image: Sir Keir with wife Victoria at Taylor Swift’s Wembley gig. Pic: Keir Starmer/X
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Challenged on whether he was being defensive about the decision – which has been criticised when the current government is expected to raise taxes in the upcoming budget – Sir Keir repeated it was “important” to explain that “behind some of these numbers is a human story”.
When asked whether this was also the case for the thousands of pounds worth of clothes, hospitality, sports and music tickets, Sir Keir said it was a judgement call to be made by each MP on whether to accept donations.
However, he claimed his use of the directors’ box at Arsenal – where he regularly attends – was offered by the club, and he uses it to avoid increasing taxpayer spending on his security.
He also repeated his stance that he would no longer accept donations for clothing.
The prime minister declined to say whether he would ban MPs accepting such donations.
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Sir Keir has come under fire for accepting two and a half times more donations than any other MP after being highly critical of the Conservatives accepting donations.
Lord Alli, 59, a former chair of online fashion giant Asos, is his largest personal donor.
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The TV executive, who has donated to the party for 20 years, has become the focus of Labour’s conference in Liverpool due to the amount he has donated to Sir Keir.
Of £107,000 worth of gifts and hospitality handed to Sir Keir since December 2019, Lord Alli gave him the equivalent of £39,122.
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Sky News political correspondent Liz Bates bumped into Lord Alli at the Labour conference on Tuesday and asked if he regrets making any of the donations.
However, the peer avoided the question and turned away, refusing to speak. The previous day, he told another Sky News correspondent: “Please don’t – this is not very nice.”
Two people who died following a fire at a caravan site near Skegness have been named by police.
Lincolnshire Police said 48-year-old Lee Baker and his 10-year-old daughter Esme Baker, both from the Nottingham area, were killed in the blaze.
However, formal identification is still yet to take place and “could take some time”, the force said.
Emergency services were alerted to a fire at Golden Beach Holiday Park, in the village of Ingoldmells, at 3.53am on Saturday.
In a statement issued through police, a member of the Baker family said: “Lee and Esme were excited to be spending the first weekend of the holidays together.
“We are all utterly devastated at what’s happened.
“This loss is incomprehensible at the moment, and we ask for people to give us space to process this utterly heartbreaking loss.”
A GoFundMe page set up for the victims’ family described the father and daughter as “two peas in a pod” who were “both happy-go-lucky people who loved life”. It has so far raised more than £3,000.
The police force, together with Lincolnshire Fire & Rescue, are continuing to investigate the cause of the blaze.
Detective Inspector Lee Nixon said: “We believe we might be close to arriving at a working hypothesis.
“We are working hard to validate the facts available to us to be able to provide answers for the family and loved ones of those who were very tragically taken by this fire.
“Yet the evident intensity of the fire has made this task incredibly challenging.”
Dan Moss, from Lincolnshire Fire & Rescue, said: “Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with the family at this time.
“Our Fire Investigation Team is working with colleagues from Lincolnshire Police, and a full investigation into the cause of the fire is ongoing.
“Once investigations are complete, local fire crews and our community fire safety team will be on hand to talk to people in the area and address any fire safety concerns they may have, at what will be an upsetting time.”
A man has been arrested by police investigating a “significant” wildfire that triggered a major incident in Northern Ireland.
More than 100 firefighters and 15 fire appliances were deployed on Saturday to Sandbank Road, Hilltown, to tackle the blaze which is believed to have been caused deliberately, fire chiefs said.
Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS) said the fire had a front of approximately two miles “including a large area of forestry close to property”.
It was extinguished at 2.53am on Sunday and the major incident status lifted, the NIFRS said.
“The cause of this fire is believed to have been deliberate,” chief fire and rescue officer Aidan Jennings said.
The Police Service of Northern Ireland said on Sunday that a 25-year-old man had been arrested “on suspicion of arson being reckless as to whether life would be endangered, and non-related driving offences”.
“He remains in custody at this time as enquiries continue into the circumstances surrounding the fire,” the force added.
Image: The wildfire on Sandbank Road, Hilltown. Pic: Sky Watch NI
Image: More than 100 firefighters were at the scene of the fire. Pic: Sky Watch NI
On Saturday, helicopters were deployed to tackle Scotland’s fourth wildfire this week, with police saying a blaze “which started in the Newton Stewart area has spread northwards and is expected to reach the Loch Doon area of East Ayrshire around 12am on Sunday”.
Police Scotland added: “As a precautionary measure members of the public are asked to avoid the Loch Doon area and anyone who may be camping in the area is advised to leave.”
Image: Moors Valley Country Park blackened by fires this week
Elsewhere in England, Devon and Cornwall Police said they were assisting the fire service with temporary road closures on the A30 in the Bolventor area as they tackle “a number of fires” on moorland.
In Dorset, Moors Valley Country Park was forced to close after multiple wildfires broke out there on Wednesday.
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Wildfires spread across nature reserve
Separate incidents were then reported at Upton Heath in Poole on Wednesday, and nearby Canford Heath in the early hours of Thursday.
Friday was officially the warmest day of the year so far – with temperatures in the south of England reaching 23C (73.4F) – the highest since 21 September last year, according to the Met Office.
Police are investigating after a man was shot dead in County Durham.
Officers were called to an address in Elm Street, Stanley, at about 5.20pm on Saturday after reports of a “disturbance”, Durham Constabulary said.
A man in his 50s was found to have been shot and despite the efforts of paramedics he was pronounced dead at the scene.
His family have been told and are being supported by specially trained officers.
Specialist crime scene investigators are at the scene, and officers are carrying out house-to-house enquiries.
A cordon is in place and is expected to stay there for some time.
Detective Superintendent Neil Fuller said: “This is a truly shocking incident in which a man has been shot and has sadly died.”
He added: “Residents may see an increased police presence in the area. I would like to thank them for their support while we carry out this investigation.
“Our thoughts are with the man’s family at this time.”