Britain’s Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner has stepped down after revelations that she underpaid property tax on a recent home purchase.
This has plunged Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labour government into fresh turmoil.
Rayner, who also held the housing portfolio, resigned on Friday following days of mounting pressure over reports that she failed to pay the correct rate of stamp duty when buying a second home on the south coast earlier this year.
UK media said she underpaid around £40,000, a mistake she attributed to “poor legal advice.”
Her resignation is a major blow for the government, depriving it of one of its most popular and outspoken figures.
It also deepens the problems facing Starmer’s government, which, despite winning a landslide election in July 2024, is now struggling against growing support for the Reform UK party, currently leading national opinion polls.
Rayner’s downfall stemmed from her purchase of an £800,000 apartment in Hove in May. Instead of paying the £70,000 higher-rate stamp duty charged on additional properties, she paid just £30,000.
She insisted she had believed the higher levy did not apply, as she had transferred her stake in a previous property into a trust for her children.
Though some tax experts acknowledged the UK system is notoriously complex, Rayner’s credibility suffered because of her history of calling out Conservative ministers for similar controversies.
While in opposition, she branded former health secretary Jeremy Hunt “sleazy” over a stamp duty loophole and demanded ex-chancellor Nadhim Zahawi resign after his multimillion-pound settlement with tax authorities.
Starmer first defended Rayner, but her position became impossible to keep as Britain faces a housing crisis and Labour considers raising property taxes. Her opponents labeled her a hypocrite, while the prime minister faced rising criticism for standing by her.
Rayner’s resignation takes away one of Labour’s most popular figures. She came from a working-class family in Manchester and was known for her fiery style and down-to-earth personality.
Many younger voters liked her, and she helped Labour reach beyond its traditional city base. Some even saw her as a possible rival to Starmer.
Analysts say Starmer might not be unhappy about her leaving. Still, the scandal has made a bad summer worse for Labour, as Reform UK grows stronger in the polls.
Labour had promised honesty after years of Conservative scandals, but Rayner’s exit shows how shaky the government’s position is only months into office.
