Minister urges reform of PM Spouses’ roles amid donation scandal

Government minister calls for a change in the way the spouses of prime ministers are treated in the wake of the donations row over Lady Victoria Starmer.

Jess Phillips, a junior Home Office minister, described the current system as a “fudge”, saying that the husband, wife or partner of the Prime Minister (PM) should either have a formal role, like that of the first lady in the US, or be a private citizen.

Spouses of PMs in the UK don’t currently have an official office or any form of secretarial support. Despite this, Phillips claims they are often expected to act as a “prop” for the prime minister and be a campaigner on public issues.

Controversy

Sir Keir Starmer, and his wife, have both recently become embroiled in a scandal surrounding ministerial donations.

Since the beginning of the scandal, Sir Keir has paid back more than £6,000 in gifts and hospitality that he had received since entering Number 10, this includes clothing gifted to Lady Victoria Starmer.

Promoting her book in at Cheltenham Literature Festival, Ms Phillips said: “I hate it. I hate wife as prop in any circumstance,”, after questioning if Kamala Harris’ husband, potential First Gentleman, would be receiving the same level of scrutiny as Lady Starmer.

Formalisation

Ms Phillips went on to describe Lady Starmer as “incredibly nice,” noting that Sir Keir is very protective of his wife and family, particularly regarding their privacy. “The way they keep their children really private gives you an idea of what she is like,” Phillips said.

“It just must be horrible, and I don’t think there is anyone who Keir is more protective of than her.”

Phillips called for the role of the prime minister’s spouse to be formalised in some way. Without any official office, secretariat, or support, she argued that it is unreasonable to expect the spouse to take on such responsibilities.

“You have to formalise it in some way and create some infrastructure, or otherwise she’s been expected to do all this stuff without any office, any secretariat, any support,” she said.

Comparisons

In making her point, Phillips drew comparisons to Cherie Blair, wife of former Prime Minister Tony Blair, who faced similar struggles during his time in office.

“If I compare it to Cherie Blair, who I think said she was going to carry on, and then it just became untenable for her to carry on in the manner in which she had worked before very eminently…”

Phillips highlighted the need for clearer boundaries. “We don’t have landing zones for women, we don’t, we just don’t. So, she either has no role and she can be a private individual and just be left alone in everything, or, like in America, she has a role.”