Angela Rayner has resigned as the UK deputy prime minister after admitting underpaying stamp duty on the purchase of an £800,000 flat.
Rayner resigned this morning after Sir Keir Starmer received a report into the circumstances surrounding the purchase of the flat and the advice sought by Rayner in relation to her personal financial affairs.
The prime minister’s ethics adviser found that the failure to pay the correct amount of stamp duty meant “she cannot be considered to have met the ‘highest possible standards of proper conduct’ as envisaged by the [ministerial] code.”
In her letter of resignation as deputy prime minister and housing secretary, Rayner thanked the public for their support in recent days and said she has always taken her responsibilities ‘with the utmost seriousness’.
She added:
“I have long believed that people who serve the British public in government must always observe the highest standards, and while the Independent Adviser has concluded that I acted in good faith and with honest and integrity throughout, I accept that I did not meet the highest standards in relation to my recent property purchase.
“I deeply regret my decision not to seek additional specialist tax advice given both my position as Housing Secretary and my complex family arrangements. I take full responsibility for this error… Given the findings, and the impact on my family, I have therefore decided to resign as Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, as well as Deputy Leader of the Labour party.”
The report from Sir Laurie Magnus CBE, independent adviser on ministerial standards, drew four conclusions: Rayner was open about the existence of the trust at the centre of the controversy and considered that the firms advising her had appropriate knowledge and information surrounding its provisions; she believed that the lower rate of SDLT was applicable on the basis of the written advice she had received; that the written advice was qualified with the acknowledgement it did not constitute expert advice and a suggestion that specific tax advice should be obtained; and if such expert tax advice had been received earlier it would have advised her that a higher rate of SDLT was due.
Sir Magnus acknowledged that Rayner deeply regrets the mistake and quickly sought to correct it. However, he added:
“It is highly unfortunate, however, that Ms Rayner failed to pay the correct rate of SDLT on this purchase, particularly given her status and responsibilities as the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government and as Deputy Prime Minister. She believed that she relied on the legal advice she had received, but unfortunately did not heed the caution contained within it, which acknowledged that it did not constitute expert tax advice and which suggested that expert advice be sought.”
He concluded:
“I believe Ms Rayner has acted with integrity and with a dedicated and exemplary commitment to public service. I consider, however, that her unfortunate failure to settle her SDLT liability at the correct level, coupled with the fact that this was established only following intensive public scrutiny, leads me to advise you that, in relation to this matter, she cannot be considered to have met the “highest possible standards of proper conduct” as envisaged by the Code. Accordingly, it is with deep regret that I must advise you that in these circumstances, I consider the Code to have been breached.”
Sir Starmer acknowledged Rayner’s resignation in a handwritten letter, in which he said he was ‘very sad that your time as Deputy Prime Minister, Secretary of State and Deputy Leader of the Labour party has ended in this way’.
He added:
“You have given your all to making the Labour Government a success and you have been a central part of our plan to make Britain fairer for working families. Your work at MHCLG to help build the homes that Britain needs has been hugely important and your work to create more fairness in the workplace through the Employment Rights Bill reinforces a very significant achievement that will change the lives of millions of people.”
Sir Starmer ended the letter ‘with very best wishes, and with real sadness’.
This story has been edited to reflect ongoing developments.
7 responses
Great news. Thank God for the Daily Telegraph.
Walter Sweeney, Solicitor and former M.P.
Given that SDLT is a self assessment tax, more firms should be extracting themselves from this position by NOT quoting an SDLT calculation in their estimate of fees (as far too many still do) and ensuring that they are referring all purchase clients to an SDLT Expert like https://www.compass.tech/ and ONLY charging the client to submit the return for them. The client must provide an ‘approved’ return for submission.
I would be fuming if she didn’t resign, she knows what she was doing , why should the law be any different for them…I am working class I paid my taxes, a family member of mine aquire a property from his late mum, and he has to pay a lot of money…she knows what she was doing…OK let give her the benefit of the doubt…according to her the advice she was given was inaccurate…for a person in her position you would think she would check and recheck to make sure everything was done Legally…NONSENSE
Completely agree, she is a senior person in a position of significant authority. Blaming ignorance or other people shows a completely naivety and frankly lack of intelligence given her role. If she is unable to get her own affairs in order she should not be trusted with the affairs of the nation.
She had to resign, there are no two ways about it. The moment this came out her position was untenable. Labour have criticised Tories and asked them to resign for matters that they have done wrong, Tories have done the same. It is the nature of the business. Starmer should have had more backbone earlier and got rid of her before his hand was forced. This was always on the cards, instead Starmer hid behind the report.
As for Conveyancers, this is only going to ensure that retainers are updated and advice becomes even more limited than what it is. It does nothing for consumers or people that need help. Conveyancers will pass this on to someone else (quite rightly). The Law Society, SRA, CLC, HMRC all need to come together and decide how SDLT is administered going forward as the current way of working is not fit for purpose.
I would strongly suggest that those charging to submit an SDLT return cease immediately as no firm should be giving any hint at providing a service for SDLT.
same energy for farage tax dodging too?
It’s much worse than they are saying, this is no mistake. She valued the house she sold at more than 300k than any comparable house in the road. The value was to the pound at£650k on the inheritance tax limit. Done intentionally so she could maximise the amount she could ‘nick’ from her own sons care fund from the NHS payout and then blamed the advisers having said she sought advice but now says she didn’t. Then deliberately declares Brighton is her main home when she lives mostly between her government provided flat and the home she has sold. No mistake, deliberate and calculated. We appear to be living with a parody labour government of the 1970’s but this one has no intelligence at all.