Labor donor Lord Alli committed minor breaches of Lords rules

An allegation sparked an investigation into Labor donor Lord Alli, who was already facing scrutiny over his clothing donations to senior politicians.

A report by the House of Lords standards commissioner found that Lord Alli improperly disposed of his controlling stake in Silvergate BP Bidco Limited, the media company behind CBeebies show Peter Rabbit, of the register.

Lord Alli sold part of the company to a Hollywood studio in 2019 and no longer profited financially from his shares, but still retained a controlling stake in the company.

The commissioner found that Lord Alli also failed to register that he was an unpaid director of a company in the British Virgin Islands tax haven in time.

Lord Alli correctly registered his trusteeship of the Charlie Parsons Foundation but should also have included his position as an unpaid director of the foundation, the commissioner found.

Lord Alli co-founded the charity, which focuses on investing in “new talent, new projects and new business ideas” in the television and entertainment industry.

In the report, the commissioner said: “While I consider each individual breach of the Code to be minor, I have found that there are four breaches in total and have therefore recommended that Lord Alli write a letter of apology.”

In his letter to the Chair of the Conduct Committee, Baroness Manningham-Buller, Lord Alli said: “I am writing to you today to apologize for my breach of conduct in failing to register my interests correctly.

“I will strive to uphold the Code of Conduct at all times to avoid such circumstances again.”