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A tobacco giant has given Tory MPs thousands of pounds worth of freebies as the industry battles plans for plain fag packet laws .

Japan Tobacco International treated them to tickets and hospitality at top events like the Wimbledon men’s final, the Chelsea Flower Show and the opera at Glyndebourne country house this summer.

The firm spent £12,000 on eight backbench Tories and one Labour MP this year alone.

But in total, 34 MPs have accepted gifts worth £50,000 from JTI since 2010.

The vast majority, 29, were Tories – including the new Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond.

Labour MP Grahame Morris fumed: “The links between the evil empire that is big tobacco and the Tory party are truly insidious.”

(Image: REX/Tony Kyriacou)

The ­Government is currently consulting on plans to introduce plain cigarette ­packaging laws, but the industry is ­furiously opposed to the proposals.

MPs who received free gifts from JTI also included Dame Angela Watkinson, who has spoken out against plain tobacco packaging in the Commons.

Foreign Affairs Select Committee chairman Sir Richard Ottaway and whip Therese Coffey accepted freebies.

Deborah Arnott, of health charity Ash, said: “It would be a scandal if David Cameron was persuaded against putting cigarettes in plain ­packaging by MPs taking freebies from big tobacco.”

All gifts from JTI were within ­parliamentary rules and declared on the members’ register of interests.