Rachel Reeves Accepts 'Freebie' Theatre Tickets

Oreo

foxie48

Life as a minister is pretty all consuming, if she fails to register that she's received theatre tickets in a timely fashion I'm honestly not bothered. It's a fuss about nothing!

Don’t they have assistants working for them who can remind them about this stuff? One PA at the very least.

Of course they do, but if the PA makes a mistake it's still the minister who gets sanctioned, that's the whole point. It's a fuss about nothing!

She is perfectly entitled to accept tickets- her “offence” was not to declare it within the prescribed time frame.
She’s not the first from any party and she won’t be the last.

Nothing to see here!

keepingquiet

Did she go see the play? Would it have made a difference if she didn't use them? What was the play? If I'd have known sooner I could have gone if she didn't want to use them?
I may e-mail my MP and ask her if she has any free tickets she won't be using, and maybe I could have them?

I'd hate to think they were wasted, too!

If this is all we can find to worry about ......

I wouldn’t say ‘nothing to see here’ exactly, but it’s a minor infraction.
It would be better if all politicians remembered to declare their freebies in time.

Even better would be no freebies allowed.

Allira

keepingquiet

Did she go see the play? Would it have made a difference if she didn't use them? What was the play? If I'd have known sooner I could have gone if she didn't want to use them?
I may e-mail my MP and ask her if she has any free tickets she won't be using, and maybe I could have them?

I'd hate to think they were wasted, too!

It was probably for a rubbish play anyway...

When I was little we used to get free tickets for the circus from school because they could never sell enough...

keepingquiet

Allira

keepingquiet

Did she go see the play? Would it have made a difference if she didn't use them? What was the play? If I'd have known sooner I could have gone if she didn't want to use them?
I may e-mail my MP and ask her if she has any free tickets she won't be using, and maybe I could have them?

I'd hate to think they were wasted, too!

It was probably for a rubbish play anyway...

I want to know which play now, whether or not she went and if she enjoyed it.
Perhaps she gave them to a member of staff.

Rachel Reeves and three of her family members were given tickets to a show, believed to have been the children’s production Ballet Shoes, on December 27 last year.

Ooh, yes, that sounds enjoyable! I read the book when I was young, not that I ever danced.

Politicians accepting freebies, why am I not surprised. They are all the same, no matter the party.

Skydancer

Oh for goodness sake- so what!

This

I've been given two free tickets for the Chelsea flower show, a gift from a friend who's an exhibitor. I had four tickets for Hampton court show last year. All my friend wants in return is that I have a lovely time. If I was an MP, I'd have to declare them and some would say that I shouldn't accept them. It's really quite silly when you have MPs like Farage receiving huge amounts of money from rather suspect sources! Do have a look at his declarations of interest!

I'm beginning to think all freebies for Ministers and MPs should be banned. They can well afford to buy their own theatre tickets. We have to pay - why not them?

Grantanow

I'm beginning to think all freebies for Ministers and MPs should be banned. They can well afford to buy their own theatre tickets. We have to pay - why not them?

Too right!
In any case, if a friend or somebody gives us a freebie, not that I get any, it isn’t to curry favour or to make us look favourably on them for political reasons is it?
They shouldn’t accept gifts if offered them in my view.

So is this motivated by jealousy or concerns that MPs are being bribed?

The latter.
There’s enough shady stuff goes on in politics and MP’s and Ministers in particular do not need free gifts.

If she declared the others, then I too would put this down as an oversight.
What I find far more interesting is the dismissal on here that it was only £276.

I, along with many others on or off GN don’t have that money to spend on theatre tickets.
Also that much freebie amounts to more than a quarter of DH’s monthly pension.

No freebies for ministers whichever party sounds good to me.

A propos of very little I took my granddaughter to Ballet Shoes in January as a birthday present.
(I also bought her a copy of the book as she hadn’t read it. )
My ticket was £59, hers £39.
That’s what theatre tickets cost these days, I’m just glad we weren’t contemplating a Taylor Swift or Ariana Grande concert!
Other peoples entertainment always sounds expensive, but out of interest how much does it cost to go to a Premiership football or top team rugby match, let alone have a season ticket? I’ve never been to a Test Match at Lords or Headingley or Edgbaston, but I imagine that doesn’t come cheap either.
Comparing prices to one’s pension is a no-brainer.
Some people spend what money they have on holidays, their house or garden, car, entertainment or hobbies.
It is what it is.

I think a ban on gifts is a probably a good idea really.

However, might come under a different heading in "Declaration of Interests" - but some of the entries of "earnings" like "speaking engagements" (like Farage earning over £40.000 for one off speech for rich tax-dodgers) wouldn't be touched by a ban on gifts. To my mind these are de facto gifts.

My husband and I both had gifts bought for us and have given small gifts to people who have some sort of power ... a teacher, a secretary, a dentist for example

Because we were (in the past) allowed things up to a fiver, tenner or whatever we have always been careful not to make them too big. We wrote them in a book held in the main office.

My husband was in a very bad position once with a rather useless Chinese student wanting a better mark - armed with an expensive whisky....
They are not SO stupid that they don't know when something is potentially a bribe!

Normally.

I think they could accept and log them up to (say) £1000?

Wyllow3

I think a ban on gifts is a probably a good idea really.

However, might come under a different heading in "Declaration of Interests" - but some of the entries of "earnings" like "speaking engagements" (like Farage earning over £40.000 for one off speech for rich tax-dodgers) wouldn't be touched by a ban on gifts. To my mind these are de facto gifts.

A gift in terms of only getting paid for speaking, possibly.
But you’d have to tackle those who willingly pay to hear him speak as well tackling the idea that it’s a gift, de facto or not.
Lots of people including MPs and ex MPs make a living getting paid for speaking engagements and sadly, just banning Farage won’t work.

petra

Inside your head must be a really miserable place to be, mae13 Do you find joy in anything 🤷‍♀️

Labour bashing seems to provide endless joy for some GNs.

Comparing prices to one’s pension is a no-brainer.
How very dismissive.
I was actually commenting about the only £276 rather than the theatre tickets.
But if you’re not affected, it’s easy to say.

Wyllow3

I think a ban on gifts is a probably a good idea really.

However, might come under a different heading in "Declaration of Interests" - but some of the entries of "earnings" like "speaking engagements" (like Farage earning over £40.000 for one off speech for rich tax-dodgers) wouldn't be touched by a ban on gifts. To my mind these are de facto gifts.

A lot of politicians and ex politicians do these highly paid after dinner talks, but at least they’re doing something to earn it, singing for their supper.It’s all the expensive gifts accepted for, we hope, doing nothing!
An outright ban on accepting gifts would be the better way to go.