Keir Starmer’s commitment to putting an end to “the chaos of sleaze” is already on the ropes, largely because of reports surrounding his wife’s clothes. The prime minister initially failed to declare clothes gifted to Victoria Starmer by Labour party donor Waheed Alli – although he has now done so.

Other gifts and hospitality, including tickets to see Taylor Swift in concert, have been properly declared but their total value amounts to more than £100,000 since December 2019 – a comparatively high sum.

The whole farrago raises several questions, the most pertinent of which are: is it a bit weird that the prime minister and his wife get their clothes bought for them? And, what does this mean for Labour’s wider promise to clean up British politics?

It is admittedly quite weird to hear that the Starmers are being dressed via donations. But we do have to keep a sense of proportion. Being a prime minister, or even a prominent politician, is a bit of a weird job. Being so rich that you can afford to buy the leader of the UK (and his wife) clothes is a bit of a weird place to be. And that is important when we think about wider issues of undue influence.

When researching my book, Party Funding and Corruption, I interviewed lots of very rich party donors. Some were members of the Leader’s Group – an elite club with a £50,000-a-year entrance fee for which, in return, you got to go for dinner with Conservative ministers. I was amazed by the way in which they talked about these payments as if they were little more than Netflix........

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