Recently, United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who has been in office for less than three months, has been caught in a "giveaway" storm, and local media The Daily Star even reported that the Labour leader "received more gifts and hospitality than any other party leader", which led many critics to ridicule him as the "king of giveaways".
In fact, back last month, Starmer drew attention for allowing aristocratic and wealthy businessman Waheed · Ali to enter and leave Downing Street freely. Over the past 20 years, Lord Ali has funded at least seven Cabinet Ministers with a total donation of £314147.
Among them, Starmer has received the most donations, including clothes, eyewear and other gifts worth £155,122 since 2020, such as £698 tickets to Coldplay and free boxes to watch dozens of Arsenal games.
In addition, according to the Daily Mail, Starmer had also used Lord Ali's £18 million penthouse before the election. Ironically, Starmer's wife, Victoria, insisted that she was not interested in politics while accepting a donation from Lord Ali.
Victoria allegedly received at least £5,000 in clothes and other gifts from Lord Ali (pictured above). As a result, critics have slammed the Starmers, calling the situation "crazy" and "all freebies should be banned."
Others said it was incomprehensible that the Starmers, who earned more than £200,000 a year, could not afford their own suits and dresses; Others accused Starmer of "hypocrisy" and "corruption."
Just a few days ago, the £300 winter fuel allowance for millions of retirees in the region was cut, sparking outrage. Scottish National Party MP Kevin · Stewart condemned: "This winter, when many retirees may be facing heating or food problems, the Prime Minister is collecting luxury goods from donors." "Designer clothes, fancy eyewear and fancy tickets were all bought by him, and he was the king of freebies for Labour."
Andrew Nell, a well-known local comment·ator, warned, "Starmer's honeymoon is gone in the blink of an eye, and it's too late to open the champagne." Former Conservative Chancellor of the Exchequer George · Osborne also gloated, saying in an interview with the PoliticoMoney podcast that Starmer and Labour were both happy to see Starmer and Labour "make a mess of themselves."
However, on September 19, Jona·than Reynolds, the United Kingdom business secretary, vigorously defended Starmer in a television interview, saying that the prime minister's free viewing of football matches and concerts was not his "benefit", but his "job", after all, he "works almost all the time", so he "has the right to relax".
But the local population didn't buy it, and according to a Daily Mail poll, the vast majority of voters opposed Starmer's acceptance of the freebie. According to reports, 58% of voters believe Starmer should not accept gifts; Another 62% of voters believe that his wife should not accept gifts either; Another 60 percent of voters said they were disappointed with Starmer and thought he would not be able to deliver on his political promises.
图源：Daily Star,Bing