Reactions as Angela Rayner quits as UK deputy PM after tax scandal rocks Labour govt

Britain’s Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner has resigned in the wake of a property tax scandal, plunging Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labour government into deeper turmoil just over a year after its landslide election victory, even as tax experts continue to weigh in on the controversy.

Rayner announced her decision on Friday following days of mounting pressure over revelations that she underpaid £40,000 in stamp duty when purchasing a second home earlier this year.

In her resignation letter, Rayner said the intense media focus had made it impossible to continue in her roles as Deputy Prime Minister, Housing Minister, and Deputy Leader of the Labour Party.

“While I rightly expect proper scrutiny on me and my life, my family did not choose to have their private lives interrogated and exposed so publicly,” she wrote, calling her position “unbearable.”

Reports say Rayner’s rise to the top of British politics was one of the Labour Party’s most compelling narratives. Born into poverty on a council estate near Manchester, she became a mother at 16 before training as a care worker and later becoming an outspoken trade union official.

“For a teenage mum from a council estate in Stockport to serve at the highest level of government has been the honour of my life,” Rayner said in her farewell note. “I’ve always known politics changes lives because it changed mine.”

However, the same outspokenness that once endeared her to voters also made her vulnerable, reports say. Her past attacks on Conservative MPs over their financial affairs came back to haunt her when her own tax affairs came under scrutiny.

The controversy centres on Rayner’s purchase of an £800,000 apartment in Hove in May. Reports revealed she paid £30,000 in stamp duty, the standard rate, instead of the higher £70,000 rate for second homes.

Rayner argued the underpayment resulted from poor legal advice, as she believed her former home in Greater Manchester no longer counted after she transferred it into a trust for her children. That trust was funded by a medical settlement after her son suffered life-long disabilities following premature birth.

Tax experts have acknowledged the complexity of the UK’s system. “The tax system is a mess, and stamp duty particularly messy,” said Dan Neidle, founder of Tax Policy Associates, according to CNN. “So I’m generally forgiving of people who make mistakes.”

Still, the damage was done. Rayner’s past accusations of “Tory sleaze” , including a 2018 attack on Jeremy Hunt for exploiting a “tax loophole” and calls for former Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi to resign over a £5 million settlement, made the scandal politically toxic, reports say.

Starmer initially stood by his deputy, but his defence weakened as the story dominated headlines. Critics argued it was impossible to justify her staying on while Labour considers raising property taxes to tackle Britain’s housing crisis.

Reports say Rayner’s resignation leaves Starmer without one of his most popular and outspoken lieutenants, and a key link to Labour’s traditional northern base. Analysts say her departure also comes at a perilous time for the government.

Labour, which swept to power in July 2024, is now sliding in the polls. The right-wing Reform UK party has surged ahead, capitalising on discontent over immigration and economic uncertainty, according to available data. Its national conference opened in Birmingham on Friday, further fuelling pressure on Starmer’s leadership.

Some insiders believe Starmer may privately welcome the departure of his closest rival for the party leadership. But analysts warn that losing Rayner could deepen Labour’s identity crisis and erode trust among working-class voters who saw her as their champion.

In his response letter, Starmer expressed regret: “Although I believe you have reached the right decision, it was a decision which I know is very painful for you. You have been a trusted colleague and true friend for many years.”