Labour failed to declare donations over ‘anti-semitism fears’

SIR KEIR STARMER’S campaign manager failed to declare £700,000 in donations amid concern that some of the funds came from a Jewish donor who needed to be protected from antisemitism in the Labour Party, The Telegraph has learnt.

Morgan Mcsweeney’s think tank was investigated by the Electoral Commission after he failed to register donations received by Labour Together, an organisation he ran until 2020 when he became Sir Keir’s chief of staff.

Now, The Telegraph has learnt that during the time Mr Mcsweeney failed to register support from millionaire venture capitalists and businessmen, concerns had been raised about protecting a high-profile Jewish donor from a backlash. Well-placed sources said that senior figures at the think tank wanted to ensure that Sir Trevor Chinn, who is a director of the organisation and a regular donor, kept a low profile because of “growing” anti-semitism in the Labour Party.

Documents obtained under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act also revealed Mr Mcsweeney was told to declare donations received by the think tank but disregarded the instructions.

The donations came under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership, but the disclosure that Labour-affiliated organisations felt that Jewish donors had to be protected will once again raise questions about anti-semitism within the party.

Around £100,000 of donations given by Sir Trevor were reported late by the think tank. Last night, the retired businessman he believed it had been a “mistake” rather than because of concerns about anti-semitism. There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing by Sir Trevor.

Labour Together was fined £14,250 for its failure to register donations totalling £739,000.

However, there is now the prospect of a new investigation by the Electoral Commission after The Telegraph discovered Mr Mcsweeney contacted the regulator in 2017 and was told that funds needed to be registered, according to documents obtained under FOI. According to a note of a phone call between Mr Mcsweeney and an official at the regulator, Mr Mcsweeney was informed that Labour Together was registered as a members’ association. An email, dated Dec 6 2017, then follows in which he is told that members’ associations must report donations of more than £7,500.

Despite these instructions, the vast majority of donations that occurred between the advice being given and Mr Mcsweeney leaving the organisation, were not registered. The think tank reported the donations in 2020, after Mr Mcsweeney had left.

Angus Macneil, an independent MP, said that the Electoral Commission needed to “look again” at Labour Together’s failure to declare funds.

The Electoral Commission said that they had been “satisfied that evidence proved beyond reasonable doubt that the failures by the association occurred without reasonable excuse”.

Labour Together said that it “proactively raised concerns about its own reporting of donations to the Electoral Commission”. The Labour Party did not respond to questions.

The FOI documents were obtained by Paul Holden, an investigative journalist whose book, Keir Starmer, Labour Together, and the Crisis of British Democracy”, which will be published this year.