The London Mayor is the latest Labour politician to face criticism over freebies.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan (Image: Getty)
Sir Sadiq Khan has come under fire for accepting two free football tickets. The Labour Mayor of London watched his team Liverpool lose to Newcastle in the Carabou Cup final at Wembley stadium on March 16.
Sir Sadiq declared the two tickets from the Football Association, worth £275 each, in the City Hall register of gifts, saying he accepted them for “stakeholder engagement”. But it comes amid an ongoing row over Labour politicians accepting freebies.
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Emma Best, deputy leader of the City Hall Conservatives, told the Evening Standard: “Sir Sadiq has enjoyed over £100k worth of freebies so far as mayor of London.
“Perhaps he’d do well to listen to his Parliamentary colleagues and consider whether accepting these tickets whilst telling Londoners to expect council tax rises, police cuts, and crumbling infrastructure smacks a little of ‘Let them eat cake’.
“Does he really think Londoners believe all of these gifts were necessary to accept?”
Sir Sadiq has accepted tickets to see Liverpool on four occasions this season.
The VIP tickets also enable the London Mayor, who requires round-the-clock police protection, to remain safe while attending public events.
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It comes as Rachel Reeves has faced criticism for accepting free tickets to a Sabrina Carpenter concert at the O2 arena.
Housing minister Matthew Pennycook today appeared to take a swipe at the Chancellor over the freebie.
He said he does not “personally think it’s appropriate” to take a hospitality offering to gigs.
Ms Reeves has cited security as her reason for accepting the hospitality, for herself and a family member, and said she would declare their value to parliamentary authorities.
A spokesperson for the Mayor of London said: “The Mayor is proud that London is a sporting capital of the world and attends a variety of events to support this vital part of our economy. Gifts accepted are declared openly and transparently in keeping with the GLA gifts and hospitality code.”
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