What did Donald Trump accuse Keir Starmer’s Labor Party of? The US presidential campaign’s complaint is explained

Donald Trump’s presidential campaign has launched an extraordinary attack on Keir Starmer’s Labor Party as party officials are accused of interfering in the upcoming US election.

The Trump-Vance campaign filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) accusing Labor of illegal foreign donations to compete with Kamala Harris’ campaign.

Campaign co-manager Susie Wiles writes on Mr Trump’s website: “The far-left Labor Party inspired Kamala’s dangerously liberal policies and rhetoric.”

The post contains several obvious references to the American Revolutionary War, which was fought in the 18th century and led to the independence of the United States from Great Britain.

Entitled “The British are Coming!”, the post begins with the words: “When British government officials previously tried to go door-to-door in America, it didn’t end well for them…”

Sir Keir has tried to play down the row by saying he still has a “good relationship” with Mr Trump, who he has met in the past.

Here’s everything you need to know about the series:

What is the Labor Party accused of?

Sending (and funding) activists to contested states

In his complaint to the FEC, Gary Lawkowski, deputy general counsel for the Trump campaign, accuses the Labor Party and the Harris-Walz campaign of “donating to and accepting illegal alien nationals.”

Explaining his position on Mr Trump’s website, a spokesman wrote: “In the last few weeks [Labour] has recruited and dispatched party members to fight for Kamala in critical battleground states in an attempt to influence our election.”

The Trump campaign’s complaint raises several issues. First, they believe that the campaign efforts of several Labor activists in the US violate the country’s electoral laws.

One key piece of evidence is a now-deleted LinkedIn post from Labor Party operations director Sofia Patel, in which she says she has arranged for “100 Labor Party staff (current and former)” to travel to key battleground states USA. She added that there are still “10 spots available” for North Carolina.

A later email from Ms Patel to Labor activists on August 2 said: “If anyone would be willing to travel to the US to ‘join our friends across the pond in the election of their first female president help’” and “[l]We’ll show these Americans how to win elections!”

Trump campaign managers argue that this is a clear violation of election law regarding the participation of foreign nationals.

Importantly, FEC rules do not prohibit foreign nationals from participating in campaign activities as “uncompensated volunteers.” Labor activists who wanted to support Ms. Harris’ election campaign apparently had to pay for their own flights and rental cars.

However, it is also reported that Democrat volunteers provided accommodation for these activists and that Labor staff were expected to book annual leave for the duration of their trip.

This is where the Trump complaint gets a little more speculative. Mr Lawkowski claims the “language” in Ms Patel’s post allows for “reasonable inferences” that these US visits were funded by the Labor Party. He also claims that the limited number of spots reportedly available for the trip to North Carolina “suggests scarcity, which in turn suggests an expenditure of resources.”

Advising the Harris-Walz campaign

The second element of the complaint suggests that Labor Party foreign nationals exercise control over parts of Ms Harris’s presidential campaign.

Mr Lawkowski referred to reports that Labor staff who helped the party win in July had advised Ms Harris’ team on election strategy. They include Morgan McSweeney, the prime minister’s close ally and chief of staff, and Matthew Doyle, Downing Street’s communications director.

Both are said to have attended the Democratic National Convention in August, where they met with Ms. Harris’ campaign team.

Veteran political adviser Deborah Mattinson, Sir Keir’s strategy director, also reportedly met with Harris campaign officials in September to discuss securing the election victory.

FEC rules state that foreign nationals are “prohibited from participating in decisions affecting election-related activities.” For example, the Commission’s guidance states that “a foreign volunteer may participate in committee events and campaign strategy meetings, but may not be involved in the management of the committee”.

This is also illegal, according to the Trump campaign adviser’s complaint. Mr Lawkowski points to “the similarity of messaging” between the Harris campaign and Labour’s recent successful election campaign to support another “reasonable conclusion” that the advice received has inappropriately influenced the Harris team’s strategy.

How did Labor respond?

Responding to the complaint, Sir Keir told reporters: “Labour volunteers have looked through pretty much every election. They do it in their free time, they do it as volunteers, they stay with other volunteers over there, I think.

“That’s what they’ve done in previous elections, that’s what they’re doing in this election, and it’s really simple.”

The Prime Minister also denied that the incident had affected his relationship with Mr Trump, saying: “I spent time with President Trump in New York, had dinner with him and my aim in doing so was to make sure we were both on good terms “We had a good relationship and we are grateful to him for taking the time.

“We had a good, constructive discussion and of course, as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, I will work with whoever the American people choose to return as their President in their elections, which are now very close.”

Steve Reed, the environment secretary, said BBC Breakfast: “It’s up to citizens how they use their time and money, and it’s not unusual for supporters of one party in one country to campaign for a sister party in another – it happens both ways and in many, many countries .”

“But none of this was organized or funded by the Labor Party itself, these are individual people making their own decisions as they are free to do so.”