Labour Deputy Leader Defends Staying in New York Flat Owned by Donor

Labour Deputy Leader Defends Staying in New York Flat Owned by Donor

Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner has defended her decision to stay in a New York flat owned by a Labour donor, saying she was "transparent" in declaring her use of the apartment.

Rayner 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.

Rayner argued donations were necessary because of the expense of running for office but said it was important politicians were transparent about where they had come from.

She 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 said she did not believe she had broken any rules by not declaring Tarry stayed in the flat.

The relationship between Labour and Lord Alli has come under scrutiny after it emerged in August he had been given a temporary Downing Street pass, despite having no official government role.

Rayner also rejected reports of rifts in Downing Street, saying they were a "caricature".

The row risks overshadowing Labour's annual conference in Liverpool, which began on Sunday.

Labour Conference Opens with Rayner's Speech

Labour conference opened on Sunday with a speech from Rayner, who drew on her personal background as a single teenage mother to set out what she wanted to do in government.

She reiterated her commitment to new legislation on workers' rights and promised clamp down on mouldy homes, extending it to cover the private rented sector as well as social housing.

She also peppered the speech with attacks on the Tories, saying the party had left Labour to "clean up the mess".