Airbnb row Tory is being put up by donor who gave Michael Gove £20,000

The Airbnb row Tory who boasted of finding a home in the constituency where he is standing is being put up by a party donor, it can be revealed.

Ed McGuinness was mocked online after he posed with a set of keys at the front door of his new abode in Surrey Heath, where he is hoping to succeed Michael Gove.

A fortnight ago he tweeted: “Well as of today I am now a resident of St Paul’s ward! As many of you will appreciate Michael Gove stepped down with a short timeframe to select me and it’s hard to get a place so quickly.” But online sleuths spotted the property was still listed on Airbnb.

Mr McGuinness insisted that it was a “former Airbnb that I’m now renting while I look to buy”. In a statement to the Mirror, he said: “To get a place within 100 hours of being selected is a great achievement and demonstrates my commitment to Surrey Heath. Presumably the landlord had it listed on Airbnb and didn’t immediately remove it as soon as I moved in.”

But now it has emerged that the house is owned by a Tory donor who has given Mr Gove over £20,000. Luff Associates donated £250 a month to the Cabinet minister over almost eight years.

Mr McGuinness today insisted he still believed it was a “great achievement” to secure the property so quickly.

The Airbnb listing, which has since been taken down, described the guest-suite property as a “light and airy self-contained annex” with “ample off-road parking”. Pictures showed its open-plan kitchen and living space above the home. At the time of Mr McGuinness’s tweet it still appeared to be available to book on several days in July.

Polls suggest the Tories are in real danger of losing what has been a safe seat for decades. Surrey Heath is at risk of being snatched by the Liberal Democrats.