Taylor Swift ticket gifts ‘are only for Labour leaders’, says Robert Jenrick

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Louise Thomas

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Taylor Swift tickets given as gifts to politicians and their families are “only for the leaders of the Labour Party”, Robert Jenrick has said.

Mr Jenrick and fellow Tory leadership candidate James Cleverly took questions about “freebies” on stage at the Conservative Party’s Birmingham conference.

Mr Cleverly confirmed he would accept gifts but said there was a “stench of hypocrisy” around Government leaders who had previously criticised the Conservative Party.

Mr Jenrick told delegates and activists on Tuesday: “I’ve got three young girls, and they have all been reading the papers, watching the news, and one of them said to me the other day, ‘Does this mean we’re going to get free tickets to Taylor Swift?’

“And I said to Sophia, ‘No, that’s only for the leaders of the Labour Party’.”

Asked whether he would turn down freebies, Mr Jenrick repeated: “I will do.”

He added: “The freebies are so good, incidentally, at this conference, that it’s only a matter of time before Keir Starmer turns up.”

Labour Prime Minister Sir Keir has faced criticism in recent weeks after he declared a series of gifts including clothing and glasses from Lord Waheed Alli.

He also declared a gift of “four tickets with hospitality to (a) Taylor Swift concert, value £4,000”, donated by the Football Association Premier League Ltd.

In response to a similar question, Mr Cleverly said: “I will accept gifts every now and then.

“The problem is not the accepting of gifts, particularly if those gifts are properly declared.

“The problem is the stench of hypocrisy, because while (Keir Starmer) was accepting those gifts he was attacking us for accepting gifts.”