Angela Rayner, Britain's deputy prime minister and one of Labour's most prominent figures, resigned Friday after admitting she failed to pay the correct property tax on a recent home purchase, plunging Prime Minister Keir Starmer's government into fresh disarray just two months after a landslide election win.
Rayner, who also served as housing minister and deputy Labour leader, said in a letter to Starmer that staying in her post had become "unbearable" amid mounting scrutiny. "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.
The resignation follows an inquiry by Laurie Magnus, the independent adviser on ministerial standards, who concluded Rayner acted in good faith but should have sought clearer tax guidance. Rayner admitted this week she underpaid stamp duty when buying an £800,000 ($1.1 million) apartment in Hove, on England's southern coast. She paid £30,000 ($40,000) rather than the £70,000 ($94,000) required for additional properties, reportedly saving about £40,000 ($54,000).
Rayner said the underpayment stemmed from legal advice that her stake in her Manchester home-placed in a trust for her children after a medical settlement-meant the Hove purchase was not a second home. But critics pointed to her past attacks on Conservative politicians over their tax affairs. In 2018, she accused former health secretary Jeremy Hunt of "sleaze" for exploiting what she called a "Tory tax loophole," and demanded the resignation of ex-chancellor Nadhim Zahawi when he settled nearly £5 million ($6.7 million) with tax authorities.
The episode created a political liability for Labour as it considers raising property taxes to fund public spending and grapples with a housing crisis. "The tax system is a mess, stamp duty particularly messy, and the higher rate for additional properties beyond messy," Dan Neidle, founder of Tax Policy Associates, wrote on X, adding he was sympathetic to errors but acknowledged Rayner's history of criticizing others left her vulnerable.
Rayner's resignation deprives Starmer of a high-profile ally with strong working-class roots and populist appeal. Raised in poverty near Manchester, she became a mother at 16, worked as a care worker and trade union representative, and rose to deputy party leader in 2020. "For a teenage mum from a council estate in Stockport to serve at the highest level of government has been the honor of my life," she wrote Friday.
Known for her blunt, unvarnished style, Rayner often contrasted sharply with the more reserved Starmer. She was frequently filmed at Pride events and festivals, earning a following among younger Labour voters who saw her as authentic and relatable.
Labour's summer has been difficult. The party, despite ousting the Conservatives with a commanding victory in July, has lost ground in polls to Reform UK, an anti-immigration movement that now leads some national surveys. Analysts say Starmer may be relieved to see a rival for the leadership sidelined, but the resignation highlights his government's fragility.
Starmer, in a handwritten letter to Rayner, said he was "very sad" at her departure. "Although I believe you have reached the right decision, it was a decision which I know is very painful for you," he wrote. "You have been a trusted colleague and true friend for many years."
