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UK Parliament\/PA<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\nDeputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner has defended Labour’s stance on its staff volunteering for Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign.<\/b><\/p>\n
She told the Commons that “people in their own time often go on campaigns”, adding that “it happens in all political parties”. <\/p>\n
Speaking at PMQs Rayner said no laws had been broken and the campaigners were volunteers.<\/p>\n
Donald Trump’s campaign filed a complaint alleging Labour had broken US election rules on foreign interference by sending activists to campaign for Harris, his Democratic Party opponent.<\/p>\n
Rayner was standing in for Sir Keir Starmer, who earlier played down the row while on his way to Samoa for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Rayner was responding to a question from Stephen Flynn, leader of the SNP at Westminster, who invited her to join him “in applauding the brave Labour staff members who travelled across the Atlantic to campaign against Donald Trump”. <\/p>\n
The deputy PM replied: “People in their own time often go and campaign, and that’s what we’ve seen.<\/p>\n
“It happens in all political parties, people go and campaign and they do what they want to do with their own time, with their own money.”<\/p>\n
The row over campaigning was sparked by a now-deleted social media post from Labour’s head of operations, Sofia Patel, that she had about 100 current and former party staff heading to America before polling day.<\/p>\n
The LinkedIn post said she had \u201c10 spots available\u201d for anyone willing to travel to North Carolina to campaign for Harris, adding \u201cwe will sort your housing\u201d.<\/p>\n
Foreign nationals are permitted to volunteer in political campaigns in the US as long as they are not compensated, according to Federal Election Commission rules.<\/p>\n
Labour Party sources insist no one has done anything wrong, but there is concern about whether the row could impact the so-called “special relationship” between the UK and US should Trump win the election on 5 November. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n On Wednesday, Scotland Office Minister Kirty McNeil pulled out of guest appearance at an online event on US election night in support of Harris. <\/p>\n McNeill had been due to speak at the Labour for Women meeting via Zoom called “Come on Kamala” in a “personal capacity” to provide election analysis, a government spokesperson said.<\/p>\n However, her appearance had drawn criticism online and from the Shadow Scottish Secretary John Lamont, who accused McNeil of “hosting a fully fledged rally” for Harris.<\/p>\n McNeill will no longer attend the event, the BBC understands. <\/p>\n The Trump campaign complaint to the Federal Election Commission flags that senior Labour Party staff attended the Democratic convention in Chicago and met Harris\u2019s campaign team, naming Morgan McSweeney, the prime minister\u2019s chief of staff, and Matthew Doyle, Downing Street director of communications.<\/p>\n Deborah Mattinson, Sir Keir\u2019s former director of strategy, was also named as someone who travelled to Washington in September to brief Harris\u2019s campaign on Labour\u2019s election-winning approach.<\/p>\n It is understood from Labour officials that Labour met McSweeney\u2019s costs, while Doyle was hosted by the Progressive Policy Institute, a US think tank.<\/p>\n But the officials said it would be wrong to suggest either man had advised or assisted the Harris campaign, adding that Labour sends a delegation to each Democratic convention.<\/p>\n Officials also pointed out that Mattinson left the Labour party staff after July’s general election in the UK.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Sir Keir briefly addressed the issue during his plane journey, telling reporters: \u201cThe Labour Party has volunteers, [they] have gone over pretty much every election.<\/p>\n “They\u2019re doing it in their spare time. They\u2019re doing it as volunteers. They\u2019re staying I think with other volunteers over there.\u201d<\/p>\n He denied the row would impact his relationship with Trump, reminding reporters the two had dinner together at Trump Tower in New York last month.<\/p>\n The Prime Minister\u2019s deputy spokesperson stressed that the UK would always have \u201ca deep and strong relationship with the US as our closest ally\u201d whoever won the election.<\/p>\n She was not aware of any plans for government ministers to speak to Trump\u2019s campaign team, but Sir Keir and Trump had discussed \u201cthe long-standing friendship” between the two nations during their New York dinner, she said. <\/p>\n \u201cIt is a special relationship which has endured for over a century with leaders of all political stripes, and that will always be the case,” she added. <\/p>\n Defence Secretary John Healey suggested the Trump campaign was “creating controversy” ahead of the presidential election. <\/p>\n However, Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader and Trump supporter, told the BBC he believed the wording of the LinkedIn post breached US election law, saying the rules were “very, very clear”.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Farage, who has travelled to the US to support his friend on multiple occasions, said: “The ad didn\u2019t say you\u2019ll be going in your own free time, didn\u2019t say you\u2019ll have to pay your own air fare, which at the moment, by the way, are very, very expensive, it said you\u2019re going to have free accommodation. <\/p>\n “If you look at the wording of that advert there is little doubt that is against American election law.”<\/p>\n Filings with the US Department of Justice reveal that Farage himself has received help three times since his election as an MP in July from a PR firm based in Pennsylvania, including with hotel costs on a trip to the USA.<\/p>\n The company, Capital HQ LLC, is run by Alexandra Preate, who used to be an aide to Trump\u2019s former strategist Steve Bannon.<\/p>\n The filings show the firm paid more than $3,500 (\u00a32,700) for Farage\u2019s accommodation at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee in July.<\/p>\n It also helped with his \u201cperception management\u201d, as well as public relations, travel and logistics.<\/p>\n Capital HQ disclosed it had also assisted with his appearance on a Fox News business programme in July, in which he was outspoken in support of Trump\u2019s election prospects. <\/p>\n It also spoke to him in August about an \u201cupcoming trip to the United States\u201d.<\/p>\n The filings were made under US laws requiring anyone who acts on behalf of foreign \u201cprincipals\u201d engaged in political activity, such as seeking to influence policy or public opinion there, to register with the federal government.<\/p>\n The Clacton MP has declared \u00a332,836 he separately received from a donor for flights and accommodation for a visit to the United States in July.<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/bbcx\/grey-placeholder.png\")
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<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\nLabour campaign ‘volunteers’ <\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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