A Labour Minister has said that accepting free concert tickets is “not appropriate” after it emerged that Rachel Reeves had attended an O2 gig and a National Theatre performance at no cost.
Matthew Pennycook said he would pay for tickets himself if he wanted to go to a concert and vowed that he had never accepted freebies in the past.
He told LBC: “I don’t personally think it’s appropriate. If I want to go to a concert at the O2, I’ll pay for it.”
It comes after Rachel Reeves was urged to “come clean” after it emerged she accepted theatre tickets worth almost £300 over Christmas.
“The Chancellor must kick her addiction to freebies and focus on undoing the damage she’s doing to family finances,” one Tory MP blasted
PA
The Chancellor, who earns almost £150,000 per year, accepted £276-valued tickets for Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest and an adaptation of Neil Streatfield’s Ballet Shoes at the National Theatre on December 27.
It comes just days after it emerged Reeves had accepted free tickets to watch Sabrina Carpenter perform at the O2 arena earlier this month.
She is said to have sat in a corporate box to watch the gig at the O2 arena, where some resale tickets cost almost £1,000.
Shadow Cabinet Office Minister Mike Wood said: “This is an extraordinary slap-down of the profligate champagne lifestyle Rachel Reeves has been enjoying since becoming Chancellor.
“When senior Labour ministers are openly criticising her judgement, then it’s no surprise business and investors are as well.
“The Chancellor must kick her addiction to freebies and focus on undoing the damage she’s doing to family finances in her emergency Budget tomorrow.”
MORE ON LABOUR’S FREEBIES ROW:
Reeves is said to have sat in a corporate box to watch Sabrina Carpenter at the O2 arena
PA
A Conservative source told the Daily Mail after the theatre tickets story came to light: “Reeves needs to come clean and reveal how she came to get these freebies.
“She seems to be more focused on jollies than fixing the mistakes of her budget. It’s no wonder she needs an emergency Budget.
“It’s a slap in the face to working people that she doesn’t seem fussed the economy is tanking, business confidence is shot and taxes are at record highs. It shows just how out of touch she is.”
Reeves defended herself, telling the BBC: “I went with a member of my family to see a concert a couple of weeks ago.
The Chancellor also accepted free tickets to a pair of performances at the National Theatre
NATIONAL THEATRE
“I do now have security which means it’s not as easy as it would have been in the past to just sit in a concert, although probably a lot easier for everyone concerned.
“So look, I took those tickets to go with a member of my family. I think that was the right thing to do from a security aspect.”
Asked whether she paid for the tickets, Reeves said: “These weren’t tickets that you could pay for, so there wasn’t a price… Obviously, there was a price, but they weren’t tickets you were able to buy.”
GB News has approached the Treasury for comment.
