Keir Starmer's £35,000 in free tickets puts football regulator's plans under scrutiny | Keir Starmer

Keir Starmer is facing questions over whether his £35,000 worth of free football club tickets pose a risk of conflict of interest, as his government prepares to introduce a new regulator opposed by the industry.

The prime minister has been under scrutiny for days for his Over £100,000 in gifts and presents during the last parliament, with a further £8,000 due for free use of a box at Arsenal's Emirates Stadium.

He also accepted £2,000 worth of free glasses, £16,000 worth of work clothes and the use of an £18m luxury penthouse apartment during the election. Labour donor Lord Alli.

Commerce Secretary Jonathan Reynolds insisted Thursday that Starmer's attendance at Arsenal football matches and Taylor Swift concerts were “part of the job.”

The cabinet minister said he had “no problem” with politicians accepting gifts that may be “of a more personal nature” and noted that hard-working politicians were entitled to “a bit of relaxation”.

Starmer also defended the decision to accept a free box at Arsenal, saying it would save the taxpayer “a fortune” on security.

“Now that I'm prime minister, the security advice is that I can't go into the stands. Or if I did, there would be a lot of security work to be done and that would cost the taxpayer a fortune,” he told ITV London.

“I have been offered tickets in other parts of the stadium where there is more security. We don’t have to spend taxpayers’ money on additional security. And that’s why I’ve made the decision I’ve made.”

A large proportion of their free tickets come from Premier League football clubs, many of whom are lobbying against The introduction of a football regulator First suggested in Tracey Crouch's fan-led review.

Labour has said it will appoint a regulator, but has rejected some elements of the review, such as the idea of ​​a 10% tax on Premier League transfers.

Starmer has strongly backed plans to create an independent regulator in the face of warnings from UEFA that government interference in football could lead to England being banned from European competitions.

However, he has also said he is willing to speak to UEFA about his concerns “to make sure we can guarantee that everything is possible.”

Caroline Dinenage, the incoming chair of the House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee and a former culture minister, said it was crucial that Number 10 was transparent about football's regulatory laws.

“Everything the government does must not only be clear and transparent, but it must be seen to be clear and transparent,” he said. “The introduction of a regulator and many of the recommendations of the fan-led football review were driven by the need to protect the football pyramid and make sure that the ecosystem that feeds those Premier League teams is functioning in a fair way that distributes money and opportunities.

“The fundamental aim of the government must be to create a system that achieves that aim and addresses the inequality between the top division teams and the rest. It must have the right intentions fundamentally.”

Another Conservative MP, Ben Obese-Jecty, said: “Given that Keir Starmer received £12,588 in hospitality and gifts from the Premier League, and £35,792 in football tickets during the last term, any decisions he makes on football governance should be subject to “forensic” scrutiny.

Starmer has also accepted free football tickets from companies including Tees Engineering and construction firm Mulalley and Co, a company that was hit with an £8m adverse judgment to compensate for unsafe cladding after the Grenfell disaster.

Emma Dent Coad, former Labour An MP and councillor for the Grenfell area said Starmer's decision to accept the tickets was “an insult” and that it was not credible to claim that going to football matches was part of his job.

“It is not ‘your job’ to go to a football match paid for by a company that did not repair the cladding. Where is this public service you talk about all the time? It is self-service, not public service,” he said.

“He is clearly a football fan, but it is exhausting. His first task is to serve people who have been defrauded for 14 years. He can pay for his own football tickets. It is an insult to people who are literally scraping together a few pennies to feed their families, pay their bills and worry about fuel payments for the winter.”

Dent Coad said he had written formally to Starmer about Mulalley's free tickets and had not received a reply. Mulalley declined to comment on why they had provided £700 in hospitality to Starmer in April 2023 to watch the Arsenal vs West Ham match.