Industry News

MPs admit to scoring free sports and music tickets

Tickets and hospitality packages worth up to almost £10,000 ($13,000/€11,000) were among the freebies declared by UK politicians in the latest register of interests.

MP John Bercow, who is the Speaker in the House of Commons, got two Royal Box tickets for Wimbledon, with an estimated value of £8,590.

Labour Deputy Leader Tom Watson also got two cheaper Wimbledon tickets while Tory Damian Collins and Nigel Adams –  declared Glastonbury tickets.

Adams is a prominent foe of the secondary ticketing market as chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Music, and was part of a group threatened with arrest as as they attempted to confront Viagogo executives at the company’s London office last month. Collins is chairman of the Commons Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee.

Among other complimentaries declared by MPs were two tickets for the England v South Africa Test cricket match at Lord’s for Defence Secretary Michael Fallon, while Labour’s Richard Burden got two tickets for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone.

Conservative Mims Davies got a ticket to Royal Ascot while Labour’s Stephen Doughty and Tory John Howell got tickets to the Royal International Air Tattoo.

Conservative Philip Davies declared several tickets for horse racing at Royal Ascot and Sandown. Skybet also gave Davies tickets to attend the League One play-offs, worth £225.

MPs are required to declare any financial interest which “others might reasonably consider to influence his or her actions or words as a member of Parliament” within 28 days.

IMAGE: National Assembly/Albert Lee