Keir Starmer buys Donald Trump’s personalised cufflink gift for his son

Sir Keir Starmer has paid to keep a personalised pair of cufflinks given to him by Donald Trump during the US president’s state visit last year.

The Prime Minister purchased the gift, which would otherwise have been held by Downing Street, for his teenage son, the Press Association understands.

Details released by the Cabinet Office show Sir Keir received the cufflinks along with a personalised necklace and a golf club from the president, while his wife was given a pair of cowboy boots.

He initially paid to keep the necklace while the other presents were listed as retained by No 10, but an updated register of ministers’ interests on Tuesday showed he had bought both items of jewellery.

Sir Keir and Lady Starmer hosted Mr Trump and his wife, Melania, at Chequers, the Prime Minister’s country retreat, in September following the president’s stay with the King and Queen at Windsor Castle.

They presented the president with a ministerial red box and gave the first lady a silk scarf.

Ministers must declare any gift they receive worth more than £140 and either hand it to their department, or pay the difference between the value and the £140 threshold to keep it.

The value and appearance of both the cufflinks and the necklace have not been made public.

Sir Keir, like other prime ministers, has generally declined to purchase gifts from world leaders, including previous items from Mr Trump.

In July, during the president’s visit to Scotland, Sir Keir received a bottle of special edition whisky, while during a trip to Washington in February he was given a framed football shirt by Mr Trump. Both items were retained by Downing Street.

In September, Sir Keir was given a rugby league shirt, leather boots and beer from Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese, clothes from publisher Conde Nast and a wooden carving from Palestinian president Mahmood Abbas, none of which he paid to keep.