Angela Rayner defends using donor’s New York flat for holiday

Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner says she does not believe she has broken parliamentary rules over declaring a stay in a New York flat owned by a Labour donor.

She told the BBC that Lord Waheed Alli was a friend and the trip had been a “personal holiday” but she had been “transparent” by disclosing her use of the apartment because he had donated to her in the past.

The Sunday Times reported that Rayner had stayed in the flat of Lord Alli with Sam Tarry, who was then Labour MP for Ilford South, last December.

As Labour begins its annual conference, there has been criticism of senior government figures including the prime minister and his deputy receiving donations of clothes and other gifts.

But Rayner said donations had been part of “our political life for some time” and she had always followed the rules on declaring gifts.

Addressing the stay in the New York flat with Tarry, Rayner told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme: “I don’t believe I broke any rules.

“I had the use of the apartment and I disclosed that I had the use of the apartment.

“In fact, I think I was overly transparent because I think it was important despite it being a personal holiday because that person, as a friend, had already donated to me in the past for my deputy leadership.”

She added: “That’s the important thing for me. People need to know were donations are coming from.”

However, Rayner was challenged over whether she should also have declared that Tarry stayed in the flat with her.

Parliamentary rules state that members should declare any visit outside the UK they or anyone connected to them take, if a donor pays for “part or all of the visit” because of their “parliamentary or political activities”.

Rayner insisted she had not broken any rules by not declaring Tarry stayed in the flat.

“It says if you’re on parliamentary business or if it’s in connection with your parliamentary duties,” she said.

“That’s how I understood it. It was a private holiday.”

Rayner added she did not go to New York with Tarry but she met up with him there.