Keir Starmer took PMQs today flanked by Angela Rayner despite her tearful confession that she didn’t pay enough stamp duty on her new seaside flat.
Sir Keir kicked off the first Commons clash of the new term just minutes after his deputy finally fronted up to questions about her property dealings.
As Kemi Badenoch demanded to know why Ms Rayner had not been sacked, the premier said he was ‘proud’ to be alongside her and she had gone ‘over and above’ to explain her situation.
It came after Ms Rayner said she ‘deeply regrets’ the error made when purchasing her £800,000 apartment in Hove, East Sussex.
She has referred herself to Sir Laurie Magnus, the PM’s independent adviser on ministerial interests. However, Sir Keir has the final decision on the future of his team.
In a tearful TV interview this morning, the Deputy PM – who is also the Housing Secretary – said she had told HMRC she owes more tax on the property purchase and that she is willing to stump up more cash.
A ‘devastated’ Ms Rayner also revealed she had discussed resigning from her Government role with her family, amid days of intense scrutiny over her property arrangements.
Tories immediately pointed to previous attacks by Ms Rayner on the tax affairs of political opponents.
Ms Rayner received a hug from Commons Leader Lucy Powell before taking her seat next to Sir Keir.
On his other side was Chancellor Rachel Reeves, who has been in a separate maelstrom after the premier’s reshuffle was seen as sidelining her – sparking a surge in the government’s borrowing costs.
Referring to Ms Rayner, Ms Badenoch said: ‘She has admitted that she underpaid tax. So why is she still in office?’
Sir Keir insisted his deputy had ‘explained her personal circumstances in detail’.
By Harriet Line
Angela Rayner has referred herself to the PM’s ministerial adviser, Laurie Magnus, over her property dealings.
When they are appointed ministers complete a declaration confirming that their tax affairs are up to date.
The ministerial code states that those who are allocated an official residence must ensure that ‘all personal tax liabilities’ are ‘properly discharged’.
‘Where a minister is allocated an official residence, they must ensure that all personal tax liabilities, including any council tax, are properly discharged and that they personally pay such liabilities,’ the text says.
Ms Rayner said today that she ‘alerted and referred’ herself to the independent adviser ‘as soon as’ she learned she had been liable to pay additional stamp duty on the Hove property.
If an investigation is carried out – and she is found to have breached the standards expected of ministers – Sir Laurie will advise the Prime Minister on what sanction should be considered.
But a decision on whether a minister remains in office is for the Prime Minister, the code states.
He is the ‘ultimate judge of the standards of behaviour expected of a minister and the appropriate consequences of a breach of those standards’.
Ms Rayner could be sacked from her Cabinet roles, but she would remain deputy leader of the Labour Party as the position is elected.
‘She’s gone over and above in setting out the details, including yesterday afternoon asking a court to lift the confidentiality order in relation to her own son,’ he said.
‘I know from speaking at length with the Deputy Prime Minister, just how difficult that decision was for her and her family, but she did it to ensure that all the information is in the public domain.’
He continued: ‘I can be clear, I am very proud to sit alongside a Deputy Prime Minister who is building 1.5million homes, who is bringing the biggest upgrade to workers’ rights for a generation, and has come from a working class background to be Deputy Prime Minister.’
Ms Badenoch said: ‘I’m not sure we would have heard all that sympathy if it was a Conservative deputy prime minister who had underpaid her tax.’
Ms Rayner has been dubbed ‘Three Pads’ Rayner following her purchase of the Hove flat.
The 45-year-old is said to have saved £40,000 in stamp duty on the apartment because she removed her name from the deeds of a family property in her constituency of Ashton-under-Lyne in Greater Manchester.
The deed changes supposedly allowed Ms Rayner to pay £30,000 in stamp duty instead of £70,000, which would have been applied if the Hove property was her second home.
But the Hove flat is not her ‘main residence’ for council tax purposes, with the Ashton-under-Lyne home remaining her primary residence.
This is said to save some £2,000 in council tax on her third home, a three-bedroom grace-and-favour flat in Admiralty House.
Ms Rayner said in a statement: ‘When purchasing the property my understanding, on advice from lawyers, was that my circumstances meant I was liable for the standard rate of stamp duty.
‘However, given the recent allegations in the press I have subsequently sought further advice from a leading tax counsel to review that position and to ensure I am fully compliant with all tax provisions.
‘I have now been advised that although I did not own any other property at the time of the purchase, the application of complex deeming provisions which relate to my son’s trust gives rise to additional stamp duty liabilities.
‘I acknowledge that due to my reliance on advice from lawyers which did not properly take account of these provisions, I did not pay the appropriate stamp duty at the time of the purchase.
‘I am working with expert lawyers and with HMRC to resolve the matter and pay what is due.’
She added: ‘The arrangements I have set out reflect the reality that family life is rarely straightforward, particularly when dealing with disability, divorce, and the complexities of ensuring your children’s long term security.
‘Every decision I have made has been guided by what I believe to be in my children’s best interests.
‘I deeply regret the error that has been made. I am committed to resolving this matter fully and providing the transparency that public service demands.
‘It is for that reason I have today referred myself to the Independent Adviser on Ministerial Standards, and will provide him with my fullest cooperation and access to all the information he requires.’