"it was the right thing to do for my boy"
It has emerged that Sir Keir Starmer accepted £20,000 worth of accommodation because his son needed a place to study for his GCSEs “without being disturbed”.
The PM was questioned about a £20,437 donation from Lord Waheed Alli between May and July.
He confirmed the donation was for accommodation so his son could study “peacefully”.
Sir Keir told the BBC: “At the beginning of the election, which we didn’t know when it was going to be called, my boy was in the middle of his GCSEs.
“I made him a promise that he’ll be able to get to his school, do his exams without being disturbed.”
The Prime Minister said there were “lots of journalists outside our house where we lived”.
He added: “I’m not complaining about that, that’s fine, but if you’re a 16-year-old trying to do your GCSEs, your one chance in life, I promised him we’d move somewhere, we’d get out of that house, and go somewhere where he could be peacefully studying.
“Someone then offered me accommodation where we could do that, I took it up, and it was the right thing to do for my boy, it didn’t cost the taxpayer a penny.”
He confirmed the donor was Lord Alli but insisted:
“But my primary concern wasn’t about influencing government, it was making sure my boy could do his GCSEs without wading through loads of journalists outside the house.”
The admission threatens to reignite the row over Sir Keir’s relationship with Lord Alli, who has also gifted the PM, his wife and other Labour figures thousands of pounds of clothing and other gifts.
Sir Keir previously came under fire after it was revealed that Lord Alli had been handed a Downing Street pass, with the affair dubbed “passes for glasses” because the donations included “multiple pairs” of spectacles for the PM.
On whether he wanted to apologise for the controversy, he told LBC:
“I’m not going to apologise for not doing anything wrong.”
Sir Keir Starmer also opened up about life inside Number 10 following Labour’s takeover in July.
He said: “It has been tough for the kids. I’m not pleading a special case but they’re 16 and 13.
“That’s a very important time.”
The row over declarations by MPs and senior ministers had threatened to overshadow the Labour conference, with criticism aimed at both the PM and his ministers for accepting luxury gifts from wealthy donors while announcing cuts to the winter fuel allowance.
Lord Alli is Labour’s biggest donor, having donated around £700,000 over the past 20 years.
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