Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has publicly acknowledged a violation of the government’s code on public appointments regarding the selection of the chairman for the Independent Football Regulator. This breach involved her failure to disclose that the chosen candidate, David Kogan, had contributed to her leadership campaign. Nandy has expressed regret for inadvertently infringing the governance code and offered an apology for the oversight.

Following an investigation, it was revealed that David Kogan, a media rights expert, had donated £2,900 to Nandy’s leadership campaign during the race to succeed Jeremy Corbyn. The probe was initiated after complaints were raised by the Tories and calls were made for an examination by the commissioner for public appointments due to Kogan’s financial support to both Nandy and Labour Party members, including Keir Starmer.

In response to the findings, Nandy wrote to Sir Keir Starmer acknowledging her unintentional breach of the Governance Code on Public Appointments. Although the Prime Minister acknowledged Nandy’s good intentions, he stated that the process did not meet the expected standards.

The commissioner, Sir William Shawcross, highlighted three breaches of the Governance Code in the appointment of David Kogan. These included Nandy’s failure to disclose his donations, the lack of discussion on potential conflicts of interest during Kogan’s interview, and the omission of Kogan’s affiliations with the Labour Party.

Nandy emphasized that upon learning about Kogan’s donations, she immediately disclosed them and recused herself from the appointment process. The PM recognized Nandy’s integrity, attributing the breach to an unknowing error and expressing support for the department’s commitment to enhancing conflict of interest guidelines.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport was advised to disclose Kogan’s political activities publicly, which included substantial donations to the Labour Party and its candidates in the preceding five years. Despite the governance issues raised, the report did not question Kogan’s suitability for the role of chair of the Independent Football Regulator.