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Labour frontbencher hires Paul Mason’s services

Peter Summers/Getty Images

This week Labour has been making much hay out of the Afghanistan debacle. Shadow Foreign Secretary Lisa Nandy is all over the news berating Boris Johnson for not taking enough refugees, not being prepared for the collapse of the Afghan army and for not sacking Dominic Raab over his holiday shenanigans. There have, admittedly, been few actual policy suggestions for what could have been done differently but the collective tone of Nandy and her colleagues has been one of shock, angst and despair at the way Western forces have left the conflict-ravaged country.

So Mr S was intrigued to discover that Nandy’s fellow frontbencher John Healey has been paying for the services of one comrade who struck a somewhat different note this week. Receipts for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) show the shadow Defence Secretary billed the taxpayer £3,600 back in March for policy research services from Exarcheia Ltd, the one-man media company run by Paul Mason.

Steerpike
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Steerpike

Steerpike is The Spectator's gossip columnist, serving up the latest tittle tattle from Westminster and beyond. Email tips to steerpike@spectator.co.uk or message @MrSteerpike

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