Diane Abbott has suggested Sir Keir Starmer is “in the pocket of millionaires” after the prime minister was criticised for accepting gifts from party donors.
The Labour MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington took to Twitter to call out her party leader for accepting gifts from peer and wealthy donor Waheed Alli.
Sir Keir has accepted around £39,000 from Lord Alli since December 2019 but maintains he has followed all the rules on accepting donations.
He has also come under pressure for accepting more than £35,000 of free football tickets over the last Parliament, along with thousands more in free clothes and concert tickets.
Although he is an Arsenal season ticket holder, Sir Keir told the BBC on Thursday that security concerns meant he could no longer watch games from the stands.
Sir Keir, deputy prime minister Angela Rayner and chancellor Rachel Reeves have all now said they will not accept donations to pay for clothes in the future.
Ms Abbott tweeted: “Ellie Reeves MP says ‘Labour’s general election victory was only possible because under Keir’s leadership we changed the party.'”
She added: “Changed it into an organisation whose leaders are in the pocket of millionaires?”
Under government rules, MPs have to register any gifts or donations they receive within 28 days of receiving them.
The Conservative Party have taken Labour’s leadership to task over the donations and have called for a probe into the issue.
“Nothing Labour says will change the fact that Keir Starmer and his top team have accepted thousands of pounds in freebie clothes whilst simultaneously consigning 10 million pensioners to a cold and hard winter.
“And not only have they loaded up on freebies whilst lecturing the public about integrity, morality, and tough choices – they also appear to have continuously failed to properly register these crony gifts.
“The British public are no fools though, and can see Labour for what they truly are – pure hypocrites.”
