Lord Waheed Alli has donated hundreds of thousands of pounds to Keir Starmer’s front bench over the past two decades.
The millionaire Labour peer has funded at least seven Cabinet ministers with donations totalling £314,147. And he previously backed candidates running against Jeremy Corbyn and those close to Sir Keir.
Sir Keir received most from the businessman at £155,122, while Angela Rayner was given £72,450 in donations and gifts.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has received £14,600 from the media entrepreneur since 2021, while Energy Secretary Ed Miliband got £10,000 last year.
Lord Alli has also spent at least £5,000 on clothes, a personal shopper and alterations for Lady Starmer, the Prime Minister’s wife.
He is Sir Keir’s biggest personal donor, giving £947,032 overall to the Labour Party and its candidates since 2004. The £155,122 he has given Sir Keir since 2020 includes £18,685 towards work clothes and several pairs of glasses.
Sir Keir also used an £18million penthouse owned by Lord Alli before the election, as part of accommodation he donated with an estimated value of £20,000.
The PM faced questions last month after it emerged Lord Alli had been given a security pass to Downing Street, in a scandal that became known as ‘passes for glasses’.
Ms Rayner received money for office costs, as well as use of a flat in New York at a cost of £1,250. Lord Alli has also donated £17,400 to her since March last year to support her in her ‘capacity as Deputy Leader of the Labour Party’.
Lord Alli made £43,404 in donations to the central party during Mr Corbyn’s reign, compared to £352,747 so far under Sir Keir.
He also donated to other MPs and candidates running against Mr Corbyn in the 2015 and 2016 leadership contests.
They included Liz Kendall, who was given £15,475, and Andy Burnham, now mayor of Greater Manchester, who received £11,000. He also gave Birmingham Yardley MP Jess Phillips £2,000 in 2019.