Speculation over Angela Rayner’s continued position on the front benches has circulated around Westminster this afternoon. The Deputy Prime Minister told Sky News this morning that yes – the stories are true – she did not pay enough tax on her flat in Hove. Keir Starmer stood by his deputy, saying he was “proud” to sit alongside Rayner. The Housing Secretary, who has reported herself to the Prime Minister’s ethics adviser, is not going anywhere. Not, at least, until the findings of the ethics adviser, Laurie Magnus, have been released.
But among Labour MPs and insiders, feelings are mixed. Though Rayner is one of the most popular members of Starmer’s cabinet and is widely seen as the glue between the government, the Labour Party and the unions, the opinion of the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP) is not so clear.
For some, the reasons behind Rayner’s situation – her divorce, the care of her disabled son, and what she sees as mistaken advice from her lawyers – warrant more sympathy than ministers who have already resigned (such as Tulip Siddiq or Lou Haigh). “She clearly tried to do the right thing,” one Labour MP said, “she’s got a difficult family situation. It’s easy to see how that could have happened.” Others think the government has bigger things to worry about. One MP said: “Not that bothered to be honest.”
Though Rayner’s position has been safeguarded by Starmer for now, others in the party take a firmer stance on the seriousness of the issue. With the date of what is looking to be a very trying autumn Budget now set (26 November), this story only adds to the government’s difficulties. As one insider points out, “Unless [Rayner] can prove that the lawyers fucked up, I can’t see a way out.”
This is the crux of the issue. Nothing is likely to happen yet, but if Magnus’s report finds wrongdoing – and if Rayner cannot prove that the legal advice she was given was wrong – there will not be much room left for manoeuvre. The party insider added: “This, in the context of the Budget is very difficult to recover.” With Labour’s poll ratings at their lowest since the party returned to office, according to the latest YouGov analysis, how long will the PLP remain sympathetic to the Deputy PM?
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