Lisa Nandy has removed herself from the final decision over who will lead the new football regulator, after it emerged the preferred candidate had donated to the culture secretary’s Labour leadership campaign.
David Kogan, a media executive who was nominated by the government as chair of the independent football regulator earlier this year, revealed last month that he had given money to Nandy during her bid to succeed Jeremy Corbyn in 2020.
He also gave money to Keir Starmer’s campaign. Kogan, who volunteered the information during the approval process for the football regulator job, said the contributions were “very small”. They did not need to be declared publicly under political donation rules.
However, Nandy has now opted to stand aside from giving final approval to Kogan’s appointment. She has written to the culture, media and sport select committee to inform them of her decision, which she said was designed to “avoid the perception of any bias or lack of independence from government”.
“As a first step to avoid any risk of this, I am writing to inform you that I have delegated the final decision on the chair’s appointment,” she wrote. The final decision will be signed off by Stephanie Peacock, a junior culture minister.
It shows Labour’s sensitivity over allegations of cronyism, after Starmer and other senior figures were criticised over their acceptance of gifts at the start of the new government last year. They have since vowed to stop accepting such gifts.
Starmer ultimately paid back more than £6,000 worth of gifts and hospitality received since becoming prime minister, including six Taylor Swift tickets, four tickets to the races and a clothing rental agreement with a designer. One significant Labour donor, the peer Waheed Alli, was briefly given a Downing Street pass.
Kogan declared the donations to Nandy and Starmer as he appeared before the culture committee last month. He said he had “total personal independence” from both of them, adding he was never “particularly close” to any of the politicians to whom he had donated money.
“I don’t believe that I have undermined that by writing books about the Labour party, being on the [political website] LabourList board or being a donor, but clearly that’s a judgment call that others may need to make,” he told MPs at the time.
Max Wilkinson, the Liberal Democrat culture spokesperson, said Nandy should reveal the extent of her dealings with Kogan. “After so many years of dodgy dealing by the Conservatives, people rightly demanded a fresh start under Labour,” he said. “The culture secretary should set the record straight, so parliament can get on with bringing in the much-needed new independent football regulator.”
Stuart Andrew, the shadow culture secretary, said the appointment “bears all the hallmarks of Labour cronyism”.
“After public pressure Lisa Nandy has finally excused herself from this decision,” he said. “The prime minister should have done the same to his permanent secretary. It is a clear conflict of interest for him and his constituency association to have taken money from a political donor, and then be involved in parachuting that individual as an independent regulator.
“No 10 need to come clean on the role of the Downing Street appointments team and special advisers in putting forward David Kogan as the preferred candidate.”
Kogan has significant experience in the world of football finance after more than two decades negotiating TV rights sales. However, the Guardian has previously reported that ministers were reluctant to appoint him because of the perception that it was a political appointment.
The prime minister’s official spokesperson has said Kogan’s selection was made “as a result of fair and open competition” and in accordance with the code of conduct on public appointments.
