Barking council boss given nearly £10k in West Ham tickets after studio deal

Darren Rodwell denies conflict of interest and has invited disabled people and looked-after children to box at stadium

A town hall leader bidding to become an MP has accepted close to 10,000 worth of free Premier League tickets from a Los Angeles movie company after his council approved plans for its new film studios.

Darren Rodwell, the Labour leader of the London borough of Barking and Dagenham, has been entertained 19 times by MBS Group in a luxury corporate box at West Ham's stadium in the wake of deals paving the way for MBS and its parent company, Hackman Capital Partners, to create 12 sound stages on former industrial sites.