Boris Johnson hides cost of free holiday given to him by a friend whom he gave a peerage
- Boris Johnson took a holiday to Marbella in October, paid for by the Goldsmith family.
- Johnson declared the freebie but in a way which masked its cost.
Boris Johnson avoided declaring the value of his Spanish holiday he took in October, claiming that the rules on declaring gifts do not require him to.
In October, Johnson travelled to Marbella, Spain, where he stayed for free at a villa owned by the Goldsmith family.
The family includes Zac Goldsmith, a Conservative minister who is a member of the House of Lords. Goldsmith received his place in the Lords from Johnson, now his boss, after losing his seat as an MP.
The cost of the villa was £25,000 a week, the Mirror reported, and Johnson spent around five days there.
Johnson noted the gift in one official log - the List of Ministers' Interests - but did not mention it in the more detailed Register of Members' Financial Interests maintained by the House of Commons.
The ministerial list has laxer requirements, and allowed him to declare the gift but not its value. The Commons list does require declaration of the cost.
Downing Street argued that it could omit use of the villa from the latter list because it was given to him by a longstanding personal friend who happens to be a minister.
Johnson's entry in the Register of Members' Financial Interests, published Friday, only mentions royalties for a book.
Here is the less-detailed ministerial declaration, which was published Wednesday.
The Prime Minister's spokesperson told journalists: "Ministerial code declarations fall outside the remit of the House of Commons' register. In line with the transparency requirements the PM has declared this arrangement in his ministerial capacity."
The spokesperson said Lord Geidt, the Prime Minister's independent advisor on ministers' interests, had approved the publication in the list of ministers' interests.
When asked, the spokesperson declined to say if Johnson found the cost of the holiday too awkward for publication.
Downing Street is relying upon an interpretation of the House of Commons's code of conduct for MPs that waives the obligation to register visits outside of the UK paid for by third parties if they are "wholly unconnected with membership of the House or with the Member's parliamentary or political activities (e.g. family holidays)."
But given Goldsmith serves as a minister only by Johnson's choice, this interpretation has come under criticism.
Alistair Carmichael MP, Liberal Democrat spokesperson for the Cabinet Office, told Insider that "to suggest that gifted holidays from a minister in [Johnson's] own government are somehow 'not political' stretches credulity. Now more than ever we deserve to know where the Prime Minister's funding comes from."
MPs have previously declared the cost of private holidays provided by others, including Johnson himself on earlier trips.
Liam Fox, a Tory MP, declared the part use of a holiday home worth approximately £3,430.66 in August for a private holiday in France, paid for a French company.
Helen Grant, a Tory MP, declared accommodation in Spain worth £1,350 for a private holiday in August had been paid for by Tory donor Lord Rami Ranger.
Johnson declared accommodation in St Vincent and the Grenadines worth £15,000 for a private holiday over the 2020 New Year, which was organised by Tory donor David Ross. Controversy over the declaration of this holiday led to the Standards Committee clearing Johnson of a breach of Parliamentary rules.
But the Standards Committee warned in their report: "Frankness, straightforwardness and transparency over the acceptance of gifts, benefits and donations enhance respect for the individual Member and Parliament as a whole. Opaque, over-complicated and ad-hoc arrangements risk undermining that respect."
The Prime Minister's spokesperson told journalists yesterday "all members of the government abide by the rules at all times" and that Johnson "expects MPs to abide by" the "clear rules set out for MPs".