ANGELA Rayner was left squirming over Labour’s freebie row today – insisting that all MPs accept goodies from donors.
The Deputy PM said receiving gifts and hospitality has been a “feature of our politics for a very long time” as she took a battering over the saga.
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She also tried to defuse growing concerns about Sir Keir Starmer’s chief of staff Sue Gray, who she claimed was being “demonised” as part of a smear campaign.
The start of Labour’s party conference in Liverpool has been overshadowed by storms over Cabinet Ministers’ haul of freebies, as well as hostile briefings against Ms Gray.
In a grilling on the BBC, Ms Rayner defended the fledgling administration from the sleaze claims that have engulfed Downing Street within the first few months.
She said: “I get that people are frustrated, in particular the circumstances that we’re in, but donations for gifts and hospitality and monetary donations have been a feature of our politics for a very long time.
“People can look it up and see what people have had donations for, and the transparency is really important. I get that people are angry, I get that people are upset.”
Sir Keir and his wife Lady Victoria have accepted thousands of pounds worth of glasses and garments from multi-millionaire peer Lord Alli.
Ms Rayner and Chancellor Rachel Reeves have also taken donations for clothes. All four have since vowed never to accept such gifts again following the backlash.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson today also insisted that her 40th birthday bash – paid for by Lord Alli – was held in a “work context”.
The Deputy PM was today also forced to deny she breached Commons rules by staying in a $2.5million luxury New York apartment owned by Lord Alli.
By Ryan Sabey, Deputy Political Editor
LABOUR were meant to be popping champagne corks this week at their annual rally in Liverpool.
Sir Keir Starmer has found himself in the mire over freebies scandals and controversy over his top aide Sue Gray.
This morning Labour chiefs sent out Angela Rayner to try and defend their position.
Judging by her 20-odd minute interview with the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg, there’s a lot more work needed to defuse this row.
She denied she broke any rules by staying in Labour donor Lord Alli’s New York flat as she declared it.
The deputy Prime Minister even went as far as saying she had been “overly transparent”.
Education Secretary even explained away that she had two events to mark her 40th birthday party paid for by Lord Alli.
But the point has been missed.
There is anger over politicians claiming freebies which is beyond the grasp of ordinary voters.
Sir Keir talked a lot about Labour being at the service of working people.
The actions at the moment don’t appear to be matching the words
Ms Rayner declared on the parliamentary register of interests that she was lent the home for a personal holiday between December 29 and January 2 last year.
But she didn’t disclose that her on-again-off-again boyfriend Sam Tarry, a former Labour MP, also joined her on the deluxe trip.
She insisted that the ex-MP was not part of her holiday but just happened to be in New York at the same time and so they met up.
Ms Rayner told the BBC: “It was a personal holiday and I think I followed the rules. In fact I went above that and I wanted to do that to be transparent about the connection I had in the use of that apartment.”
The Deputy PM added: “I don’t believe I broke any rules. I had the use of the apartment and I disclosed that I had the use of that apartment.
“If anything I was overly transparent because I thought it was important that despite it being a personal holiday, because that person as a friend had already donated to me in the past for my deputy leadership.”
Ms Rayner rejected reports Sir Keir’s chief of staff Ms Gray is sowing division at the heart of No10.
She defended the former partygate enforcer, insisting she is being “demonised” through the press.
Asked if she will still be in place by Christmas, Ms Rayner replied: “I think so, absolutely.”
She went on: “She has been doing an incredible job, and she’s got a huge amount of respect amongst the Cabinet.
“It angers me as someone who has been a trade union rep in the past and who wants to bring workers’ rights that somehow it’s okay to, you know, demonise workers in their workplace through the press and the media.”
Disclosures that Ms Gray was given a pay rise after the election, while other political advisers faced salary cuts, have sparked a row within Government.
The BBC last week reported Ms Gray was paid about £3,000 more than the PM’s salary of £166,786.
That is more than any Cabinet Minister is paid, while many of Labour’s newly recruited special advisers have joined a union over concerns about their pay.