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[global times uk correspondent ji shuangcheng, global times correspondent li jing] british prime minister starmer and his wife victoria, who have just taken office for two months, are caught up in the "wardrobe door" controversy. local media reported that the starmers received gifts from wealthy businessmen but did not declare them in full in time. starmer is facing investigation for allegedly violating the rules of the british parliament. the top leaders of the ruling labour party tried their best to quell the controversy, but the opposition conservative party demanded a thorough investigation. british media quoted starmer's response on the 17th, saying that there was nothing wrong with the way he accepted the gift. according to the british daily mail on the 17th, as the "wardrobe door" controversy intensified, victoria was pushed to the forefront of public opinion again because she wore borrowed designer clothes to attend london fashion week.

british prime minister starmer and his wife victoria source: british media

failed to report as required

according to the british sunday times, sources revealed last weekend that lord ali, a well-known labour party donor and british entrepreneur, provided victoria with multiple high-end clothing, private shopping and clothing alteration services worth more than 5,000 pounds. sky news reported that any mp must declare it within 28 days after receiving a gift or donation. however, victoria received the clothes from ali in may this year, but starmer did not declare it until last week. the british broadcasting corporation (bbc) said that ali not only gave victoria high-end clothing, but also gave starmer multiple pairs of glasses, clothes and accommodation, worth more than 20,000 pounds.

it is reported that although ali does not hold a public office, he is currently one of the few people who is said to be allowed to freely enter and exit 10 downing street. the british "guardian" reported that the wealthy businessman has donated 500,000 pounds to the labour party since 2020. in addition, this is not the first time that starmer has failed to declare the gifts he received and failed to comply with parliamentary rules.

will continue to accept donations

according to the daily mail, starmer defended his acceptance of ali's gift, saying he would continue to accept gifts from others, "all mps receive gifts, the key is to declare these gifts publicly in accordance with relevant regulations." when starmer met with italian prime minister meroni in rome on the 16th, he twice refused to rule out the possibility of continuing to accept ali's clothing in the future. he said: "declaring gifts and corruption are two different things." he also said that as a loyal fan of arsenal, he was unable to watch the game in the ordinary stands due to security issues, so sometimes he had to accept the hospitality of others.

british foreign secretary lamy also tried to defend the starmers in an interview with the bbc earlier, saying that the prime minister and his wife did not have a special budget provided by taxpayers for their clothing expenses when going out, and hinted that starmer's wealth was far less than sunak's, so it was understandable. but such an explanation seemed to add fuel to the fire. the british independent said that most international politicians, including the us president, do not have a budget to buy clothes.

the conservatives said it was “unbelievable” that the starmers accepted lavish gifts following the government’s decision to scrap winter fuel benefits for millions of pensioners.

calls for a full investigation

the british daily mirror said that this incident would have a negative impact on starmer's government. starmer's personal wealth exceeds 3 million pounds. why did he accept glasses and clothes given by wealthy businessmen?

according to the bbc, the british opposition conservative party seized on this topic and called for a full investigation by parliament. downing street said that the british parliament's standards watchdog would not investigate whether starmer violated regulations by not declaring the clothes that ali gave to his wife. in addition, the current labour party has an absolute advantage in the number of seats in the house of commons. some british media analyzed that this incident will not cause starmer too much trouble, but it is obvious that for the labour party, which has just come to power, it will still have an impact on its reputation.

according to observations by a special correspondent of the global times, some people in the uk do not take news reports about party leaders being caught violating regulations to varying degrees seriously, believing that such incidents are too common. many locals have reminded the labour government not to be carried away by the victory in the general election, as the labour party will also become the target of criticism from voters if it fails to boost the british economy as soon as possible.

however, some netizens expressed disappointment, "i want to know how much their clothes are worth in terms of pension and fuel subsidies. apparently they use two different rules from us."