Tories try to hammer Labour on freebies

It seems that one of the great posts in British politics has been filled at last. The title of ‘Minister for Sticky Wickets’ was held by the likes of David Gauke and Michael Ellis during the Tory years. Now, with Keir Starmer on the back foot over freebies, it is Ellie Reeves filling that role. The Cabinet Office minister was today sent out to defend the government on an Urgent Question. It followed further allegations this weekend about the role of ministers in Taylor Swift’s security arrangements.

Reeves opened the batting for the government, explaining how it proposes to change the ministerial register of interests. She was up against John Glen, whose speech largely consisted of listing a litany of Labour’s crimes and misdemeanours from the past 100 days. ‘Can cabinet ministers continue to party in DJ booths?’ inquired the Shadow Paymaster-General, to jeers from the Labour benches. He sighed at ministers’ failure to answer his written questions before musing whether they would receive free tickets to the Oasis tour – ‘or was it just Taylor Swift that was a freebie too far?’ ‘Where is Labour’s new ethics and integrity commission?’, he demanded, before moving on to Lord Alli and his talks with Sue Gray.