Sir Keir Starmer’s jet-setting has cost the taxpayer nearly £700,000 in his first three months in Downing Street, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.
The Prime Minister’s foreign trips cost £161,000 more than Rishi Sunak, Boris Johnson and Liz Truss combined over the equivalent period since 2021.
Sir Keir has been slated for the frequency of his trips abroad, earning him the nickname ‘Never Here Keir’.
He was accused of hypocrisy over travelling to Germany by private jet, having previously attacked Rishi Sunak for private jet use.
The flight to see the Euro 2024 final in Berlin was with a family member who was flying with him at public expense, according to government records.
His trip to New York for the UN General Assembly was £236,020 – nearly double what it cost for Liz Truss to fly to the same event in 2022.
When Boris Johnson went in 2021 as prime minister, it cost £188,000 to fly by RAF plane.
In total, Sir Keir’s flights between July and September cost £697,198. They include visits to Paris for the Olympics Opening Ceremony, Washington DC for a Nato summit and bilateral visits to Rome, Dublin and Berlin.
Sir Keir has travelled abroad on official business more in his first six months in power than any of his immediate predecessors, and has spent more time abroad than any PM has in the same time frame.
By comparison, Mr Johnson, Ms Truss and Mr Sunak’s flights in the same months from 2021 to 2023 cost £536,085.
Luke Tryl, director of polling company More in Common, said: ‘It is striking that people in our focus groups since the autumn have been raising concerns that Keir Starmer “always seems to be abroad”.
‘Perhaps most importantly Keir hasn’t done a good job of explaining why his trips benefit people here at home.’
Conservative MP Paul Holmes said: ‘This is the height of hypocrisy from the Labour Party who banged on about flights in opposition.’
Meanwhile Foreign Secretary David Lammy’s flights cost more than £900,000 from July to September.
A government source said this is in line with the travel costs of his predecessors Lord Cameron and James Cleverly.
A Downing Street source said: ‘Since taking office in July, the Prime Minister and his Cabinet have worked tirelessly to rebuild the diplomatic bridges burned by the Tories during 14 years of chaos and decline which have weakened Britain’s influence abroad and made us more vulnerable at home.’
A Foreign Office spokesman said last night: ‘The Foreign Secretary’s job requires him to travel abroad to pursue the UK’s interests.
‘This Foreign Secretary remains committed to ensuring the most cost-effective way of travel, delivering best value for money for the taxpayer.’