United Kingdom Chancellor Rachel Reeves has said she retains “full confidence” in Angela Rayner as the deputy prime minister faces an ethics investigation after admitting she underpaid stamp duty on her seaside flat.
Reeves told broadcasters that Rayner had made a “mistake” but that she still stood behind her “good friend”.
She said, “Yes, I have full confidence in Angela Rayner. She’s a good friend and a colleague she has accepted the right stamp duty wasn’t paid. That was an error, that was a mistake. She is working hard now to rectify that, in contact with HMRC to make sure that the correct tax is paid.”
Rayner consulted three people about the £800,000 purchase in Hove, including a conveyancing specialist and two trust law experts, the BBC reports.
However, it remains unclear whether any of them had expertise in complex tax law or were aware of the full details of the trust involved, which had been set up to support her son’s care.
The deputy prime minister has denied deliberately avoiding the higher rate of tax, blaming the “mistake” on legal advice that failed to “properly take account” of her circumstances.
Reports suggest she saved about £40,000 in stamp duty on the East Sussex property by not paying the additional home rate.
Rayner has since acknowledged that her family’s arrangements in Greater Manchester meant she should have paid more. She insisted she acted on professional advice at the time.
Technology Secretary Peter Kyle said Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer continues to back her, but noted that the decision on whether Rayner acted appropriately lies with the Independent Adviser on Ministers’ Interests, Sir Laurie Magnus.
Starmer himself defended Rayner during Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, saying he was “proud” to sit beside her and praising her referral to the ethics watchdog as well as her pledge to build 1.5 million homes.
The Conservatives have called for HM Revenue and Customs to open a formal investigation. Tory chairman Kevin Hollinrake argued Rayner’s claim of relying on inaccurate legal advice “cannot withstand scrutiny.”
Meanwhile, Chancellor Reeves separately confirmed that the government’s budget will be delivered on November 26, warning that the economy “isn’t working well enough” amid rising borrowing costs.
