Tory ministers and advisers accepted hospitality 3,500 times in five years

Ministers, senior officials and special advisers were treated to hospitality including lunches, dinners and sometimes tickets on about 3,500 occasions in five years, according to a new study.

- Rowena Mason

Some of the firms that provided the hospitality were also among those to secure the most meetings in key government departments, underlining the potential benefit to offering "freebies".

The findings come from the group Spotlight on Corruption, which analysed government data to examine the hospitality accepted by ministers and officials in five departments; the Treasury, Cabinet Office, Business, Energy and Science.

The study covers the period from the first quarter of 2019 to the second quarter of 2024, when the Conservatives were in power. But the issue has been back in the spotlight since Keir Starmer, Rachel Reeves and other members of the cabinet were criticised for taking free tickets for gigs and football matches from companies as well as free clothes and accommodation from a Labour donor.

Earlier this week Reeves was condemned for accepting free tickets to a Sabrina Carpenter concert. She defended the decision on security grounds but conceded yesterday that she will not take free concert tickets in the future.

The study shows the scale of the hospitality culture around Westminster and how senior civil servants and special advisers are also benefiting from corporate largesse.

The report states: