Rachel Reeves claimed expenses for handbag, perfume, and wine in banking job
Rachel Reeves has been accused of using company money to purchase birthday gifts for her colleagues before she became an MP.
The Chancellor is claimed to have used a company card to purchase wine, perfume and paying for a lavish leaving do for a co-worker – as well as claiming expenses on a gift of earrings for her PA – while working at Halifax Bank of Scotland (HBOS).
A spokesperson for Reeves said all expenses during her time at the firm were ‘submitted and signed off in the proper way’.
Downing Street has said Sir Keir Starmer backed the Chancellor, stating that Reeves has integrity and he has no concerns about her conduct.
According to BBC News, the bank’s Internal Audit department launched an investigation following a complaint from a whistleblower.
A ‘senior source’ told the broadcaster that evidence of wrongdoing by Reeves and two other senior managers was found, but the inquiry did not go further and it appears a formal conclusion was never reached.
The woman who now serves as the UK’s first female Chancellor worked at HBOS for around three years between March 2006 and April 2009 – a tumultuous time in financial history.
As part of her managerial role, she had access to a ‘Motivation’ card, which could be used to buy rewards for workers who had gone the extra mile.
It was this card that Reeves is reported to have used to buy birthday gifts for her colleagues.
BBC News cited 11 ex-employees who said they had believed it was against the rules to buy such items with the card – though a memo instructing how to use the card mentioned no such restrictions.
Another staff member named Jane Wayper told the broadcaster ‘birthday gifts and Christmas presents could be purchased using Motivation cards’, adding ‘staff were encouraged to do so for their teams’.
The Chancellor’s past career has come under the microscope (Picture: Mirrorpix)
The story was published alongside an investigation into the Chancellor’s CV on professional networking site LinkedIn, which accused her of exaggerating the length of time she spent working at the Bank of England.
After the article was published, the dates of her career moves were altered on the site with her spokesperson blaming an administrative error for the discrepancy.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch suggested the Chancellor still needs to ‘come clean’ about certain aspects of the story.
In a post on X, she said: ‘The BBC’s investigation raises serious questions for Rachel Reeves.
‘Keir Starmer said “restoring trust in politics is the great test of our era”. Until she comes clean – not just about her CV but about the circumstances in which she left HBOS, no one will take him seriously.’
Asked whether the Prime Minister still thought Reeves had integrity after the edits to her LinkedIn page, a Downing Street spokesman said: ‘Yes.
‘The Chancellor and the Prime Minister are working hand in hand to deliver on the priorities, the plan for change, and to deliver the higher growth and the improvements in living standards that the country needs.’
The Number 10 official added he could not answer questions about time spent by Cabinet ministers in previous jobs prior to Government.
He said that the Chancellor had gone through the ‘ministerial declaration process’ which all members of Cabinet go through when asked if she disclosed that there had been an investigation into her expenses before she was an MP.
‘Obviously the Chancellor, like every Cabinet member, has been through that process. The process is governed by the independent adviser. Obviously I can’t get into detail,’ the spokesman said.
A spokesperson for Rachel Reeves said: ‘Rachel is proud of the work she did at HBOS and the teams that she led, it is 16 years since she left the bank and the first time she was made aware of these claims was when approached by journalists.
‘She was not aware of an investigation nor was she interviewed, and she did not face any disciplinary action on this or any other matters. All expenses were submitted and signed off in the proper way.
‘Several former colleagues from her time at the bank, including HBOS’ former HR business partner, have corroborated this account.
‘Rachel left HBOS in 2009 on good terms.’
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