THE Deputy Prime Minister has admitted to underpaying stamp duty amid a growing controversy over her tax affairs.
Angela Rayner said on Wednesday she had referred herself to the independent adviser on ministerial standards over the purchase of a plush seaside flat in Hove, East Sussex.
She saved £40,000 in stamp duty when buying the £800,000 property telling the taxman it was her main home, according to The Telegraph.
But Rayner allegedly told the local council that it was her second home.
Her political future hangs in the balance, with her ministerial brief putting her in charge of the Government’s housing policy.
Keir Starmer (below) earlier this week claimed that Rayner was prevented from talking fully about her tax arrangements because of a court order. This was lifted on Tuesday night after an application from the Deputy Prime Minister, The Guardian reports.
Speaking on Wednesday, Rayner told Sky News: “I've been in shock, really, because I thought I'd done everything properly, and I relied on the advice that I received and I'm devastated because I've always upheld the rules and always have done.”
She also revealed she had considered resigning over the matter, adding: “I spoke to my family about it [quitting]. I spoke to my ex-husband, who has been an incredibly supportive person because he knows that all I've done is try and support my family and help them.”
The controversy centres around an arrangement she made for her home in Ashton-under-Lyme, Greater Manchester following her divorce from former Labour MP Sam Tarry in 2023.
Rayner told Sky News: “In 2020, my son had an award and a trust was set up by the court to deal with his finances as part of that award, with a legal trustee.
“And in 2023, when me and my husband divorced, the decision was because that home was adapted to support my son, who was lifelong disabilities as a result of that injury that occurred to him, that trust was set up and they decided that they would take on the property so that me and my husband could have a nest-in arrangement where we could provide for my child in our family home, which is our family home and remains our family home.
“So when I'm looking after the children, I go back to the family home. And then when my ex-husband is looking after children, he does. And it was done primarily to support my son with his additional needs and to provide stability for them during the divorce. And that was the arrangement that we put in place.”
In a statement to The Guardian, the Deputy Prime Minister said the trust had been set up in 2020 after her son, who she described as being given a payment after a “deeply personal and distressing incident” after being born prematurely leaving him with life-long disabilities.
Rayner said that when she went to buy the Hove property she took “my life savings” out of the trust which owns the Ashton-under-Lyme property – a 25% stake.
She added: “Subsequently to that with all of the media reports that have been coming out, I took expert counsel advice on all of my affairs to ensure that everything was done proper and that expert counsel said that the advice that I received was inaccurate because of the trust.”
Rayner was advised that she would have been liable for additional stamp duty on her second home and added: “As soon as I knew that that was the case, I have alerted and referred myself to the independent adviser on the ministerial code to ensure that they can look transparently at what has happened, and also contacted HMRC to say that, there is additional tax owing on this, and that I'm prepared to pay that and fully comply with the HMRC as well.”
Starmer backed his deputy to the hilt at PMQs on Wednesday, which took place less than an hour after Rayner's admission.
He told MPs he was "“very proud to sit alongside” her in the chamber and said her self-referral to the independent ethics adviser was "the right thing to do”.
Starmer said: "She has explained her personal circumstances in detail. She’s gone over and above in setting out the details, including Mr Speaker, yesterday afternoon, asking a court to lift a confidentiality order in relation to her own son.
“I know from speaking at length to the Deputy Prime Minister just how difficult that decision was for her. But she did it to ensure that all information is in the public domain."
Afterwards, a Downing Street spokesperson refused to be drawn on whether Rayner would be expected to resign if she was found to have breached ministerial standards.
