Nottingham Forest, McDonald's and JCB are among the organisations which have given thousands of pounds worth of gifts and donations linked to Nottinghamshire's MPs. Figures show that since the last General Election in December 2019, Nottinghamshire MPs have collectively been linked with gifts and donations worth almost a quarter of a million pounds.
The figures primarily come from the register of MPs' financial interests, where MPs set out what other income, hospitality or donations they have received, or what other roles they hold outside Parliament. Nottinghamshire Live has previously reported on the extra income that the county's MPs received during 2022.
But as well as extra income, analysis of the register by Sky News and Tortoise has focused on the gifts and donations that have been given to MPs. Since the December 2019 election, Nottinghamshire's 11 MPs have collectively been linked with around £246,000 worth of gifts and donations.
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Nottinghamshire Live asked all the county's MPs for a statement on the figures, and those who replied said it was important to recognise that the money was often not sent directly to them. Instead, the MPs said the largest donations often went to their local party associations for campaigning purposes.
They also said that gifts, which usually comes in the form of hospitality such as tickets to a sporting event, should not be characterised as cash being given to them. Below are the gifts and donations which Nottinghamshire MPs have been associated with since the 2019 election, in order of the amount they received. The figures are according to the Sky News analysis, with the earnings which Nottinghamshire Live has previously reported on taken away from these figures.
Mark Spencer
Sherwood's Conservative MP Mark Spencer has been linked with £61,840 of gifts and donations since the 2019 election, with the largest donors being Langley Holdings and Roodsafe, which each donated £10,000. Several donations also came from smaller companies and individuals, with the largest donation made by an individual being £4,970 given by Roger Holehouse.
Among the gifts received by Mr Spencer were £1,510 worth of gifts from Motorsport UK and £1,050 worth from Nottingham Forest. He also had £700 worth of gifts from Sky Betting and Gaming, while the Betting and Gaming Council and the British Association for Shooting and Conservation each gave gifts worth £300.
In a statement, Mr Spencer said: "I would like to be clear that not a penny of the money that I have declared has gone into my own pocket. The vast majority of the money donated to me as the MP for Sherwood is put towards the campaign and communications operations of the Sherwood Conservative Association.
"This money allows us to deliver on our promises to local people and widely distribute information on how they can get in touch with my office and receive support on a wide variety of issues. I do, however, feel that it is right that this information is out in the public domain for our constituents to consider. Nonetheless, I think it is incredibly misleading to insinuate that the money displayed under my name has been personally pocketed as that is simply not the case."
Lee Anderson
The Conservative MP for Ashfield has been linked with £58,176 worth of gifts and donations since the last election. The Cayzer Trust was the largest donor, giving £33,000.
Among Mr Anderson's other top donors were the Tandridge Club, which gave £4,250, and JCB, which donated £3,000. In terms of gifts, Mr Anderson received £3,300 worth from the Conservative Friends of Israel and £600 from Make Consulting.
In a statement on his gifts and donations, Mr Anderson said: "The cash donations I have received are used to pay for leaflets and the delivery which is a welcome boost to Royal Mail. I have received a few gifts to sporting events which I use to take deserving constituents who have done something amazing or won one of the competitions I have run.
"It's important that people realise this money does not go into MPs' pockets. It's all public knowledge and once again the press are running a non-story that creates more division in our country at a time when we should be coming together."
Ben Bradley
McDonald's and England Hockey are among the organisations which have given a total of £57,500 worth of gifts and donations linked to Mansfield's Conservative MP Ben Bradley. Mr Bradley's largest donor was The Cayzer Trust, the company which also gave £33,000 linked to Lee Anderson.
In terms of Mr Bradley, the company donated £20,500. Another big donor was One Call Estates, which donated £20,000 linked to Mr Bradley.
The biggest company in terms of gifts to Mr Bradley was Nottingham Forest, which gave him £3,040 worth. McDonald's gave him £700 worth of gifts, while Mr Bradley also had gifts from Power Leisure Bookmakers, the Premier League, Mansfield Town FC, the Betting and Gaming Council and England Hockey.
Mr Bradley said: "I'm all for transparency and I do think there are some examples in Parliament, particularly around consultancy. I don't see how it cannot be a conflict of interest for you to be a consultant for a private company and be an MP.
"I think Parliament will make its own rules on that later this year and tighten up on that. The frustration with the recent publication is that it does misrepresent some elements.
"It seems to suggest that funding for administration work for an all-party parliamentary group is somehow funding for an MP, it's not. Similarly, it presents hospitality as if it's cash given to an MP.
"I would just encourage residents to cast the same cynical eye over it as they do over anything else they read and if there's questions where they think something sounds really bad, the chances are that it's probably not right and they should come and talk to their MP directly.
"Campaign donations are not money that goes to MPs, it might be that the local association was given money to fund campaigns. I would always encourage residents in Mansfield to get in touch and ask me and I've always been quite open about all of that."
Darren Henry
Broxtowe's Conservative MP Darren Henry's biggest donation came from JCB, with the company donating £5,000. Other big donors included Lowry Trading and Stalbury Trustees.
The total amount of gifts and donations given for Mr Henry stands at £15,360 since the last election. The gifts or benefits came from KB Packaging, worth £2,850.
Ruth Edwards
Rushcliffe's Conservative MP Ruth Edwards has been linked with £13,520 worth of donations and gifts since the last election. The biggest donation was an individual one from Mark Samworth, worth £2,500.
Those giving out gifts or benefits included Nottingham Forest, with the amount given by the club to Ruth Edwards standing at £1,200. Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club and Trent Bridge Cricket Club also gave gifts or benefits.
Robert Jenrick
There are just two entries in terms of gifts and donations to Conservative MP Robert Jenrick since the last election. The figures show that the Newark MP received £5,340 worth of gifts or benefits from the Kingdom of Bahrain during a trip to the country, while £5,000 worth of donations from Ambitions Personnel were also given.
Brendan Clarke-Smith
The figures show that Bassetlaw's Conservative MP has been linked with £10,070 worth of gifts and donations since the last election. The biggest donor was the IM Group, which gave £3,000, while those giving gifts and benefits included Sky Betting and Gaming.
Tom Randall
The figure for Gedling's Conservative MP in terms of gifts and donations since the last election stands at £7,700. The biggest donor was The Carlton Club, which gave £2,500.
In a statement on the figures, Mr Randall said: "In my time as an MP I haven't had a second job or any outside earnings. The information published by Sky is already in the public domain and brings together very different types of figures including: i) MPs' outside earnings; ii) the monetary value of any benefits or hospitality received; iii) political donations, which are spent on campaigns; and iv) money received by All Party Parliamentary Groups of which an MP happens to be a member.
"Conflating these figures can be misleading and care should be taken when reading them. In my own case, for instance, of the sums declared not a single penny went into my own bank account."
Nadia Whittome
The biggest donor linked with Nottingham East's Labour MP was Robert Gaurav Singh Johal, who gave £3,000. Nadia Whittome's total for gifts and donations stands at £5,440.
Alex Norris
The Nottingham North Labour and Co-op MP Alex Norris has been linked with £4,570 worth of gifts and donations since the last election. Those giving gifts included Sky Betting and Gaming and the Gamesys Group.
Lilian Greenwood
Nottingham South's Labour MP has been linked with only one donation since the last election, with £1,780 being given by Nottingham City Transport. In a statement on the donation, Lilian Greenwood said: "I'm very grateful to Nottingham City Transport for their sponsorship of my annual Christmas card competition.
"Their support enables me to present prizes to primary school children across Nottingham South and to send out my Christmas cards to residents, businesses and organisations. People in Nottingham South can be confident that my work in Parliament is wholly focused on serving their interests."
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