Keir Starmer backs Angela Rayner over Hove flat row

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has backed his deputy Angela Rayner, as she continues to face Tory criticism over the purchase of a flat in Hove.

The Daily Telegraph reported she saved £40,000 in stamp duty when buying the £800,000 flat in East Sussex, after allegedly telling tax authorities it was her main home.

However, she told the local council it was her second home – and pays a higher level of council tax there as a result.

There is no suggestion she has broken any laws, but the Tories have accused her of hypocrisy and called for an investigation by the PM’s standards adviser.

Sir Keir told the BBC he was “proud” of his deputy and that “talking her down” was “a big mistake”.

A spokesperson for Rayner previously said she paid “the relevant duty” owed on the Hove property “entirely properly”.

Asked earlier if Sir Keir had confidence in his deputy, the PM’s official spokesman told reporters: “Yes, the prime minister works closely with the deputy prime minister… on delivering on the public’s priorities.

“There is a court order which restricts her from providing further information, which she’s urgently working on rectifying in the interests of public transparency.”

In recent weeks, Rayner has faced negative newspaper stories about her housing and tax affairs.

In an interview with BBC Radio 5 Live’s Matt Chorley, Sir Keir was asked if Rayner was the victim of a sexist and classist “briefing war”, as some of her allies have claimed, or whether she has questions to answer.

Defending his deputy, the PM said: “Angela came from a very humble background, battled all sorts of challenges along the way, and there she is proudly – and I’m proud of her – as our deputy prime minister.”

He described her as a “great story of British success”, saying she gave working-class children “a real sense of aspiration”.

Sir Keir added: “Angela has had people briefing against her and talking her down over and over again. It’s a mistake, by the way.”

Allies of Rayner have said her “primary residence” for council tax purposes remains her family home in her Greater Manchester constituency of Ashton-under-Lyne, Tameside, but that following her divorce she ceased to own a stake in the property.

This meant she was able to avoid the higher rate of stamp duty that would have been applicable when buying the Hove flat if it had been classed as a second home, the Telegraph reported.

She paid £30,000 in stamp duty on the £800,000 flat in Hove, instead of £70,000, according to the newspaper.

Stamp duty is a tax paid when buying a property over a certain price in England and Northern Ireland, with the rate varying depending on how many properties someone owns.

In last autumn’s Budget, the government increased the additional rate of stamp duty when buying a second home to 5%, on top of the standard rate.

The Conservatives have called for the prime minister’s independent standards adviser to investigate whether Rayner broke ministerial rules.

The party accused her of “hypocritical tax avoidance”, while supporting higher taxes on second homes.

As secretary of state for housing, communities and local government, Rayner is responsible for council tax and housing policy.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said: “I think people would appreciate clarity from Angela Rayner.

“I don’t know the details of the house purchases, but the reason why people are asking, as they have been in my constituency, is that they’re worried about hypocrisy.”

The Tories have claimed the deputy PM had breached the Ministerial Code because “her tax affairs are not in good order”.

Under the rules, ministers are asked to confirm their tax affairs are up to date and consistent with their overarching duty to comply with the law.

A spokesperson for Rayner previously said: “The deputy prime minister paid the relevant duty owing on the purchase of the Hove property in line with relevant requirements and entirely properly, any suggestion otherwise is entirely without basis.”

The Tories are also questioning whether Rayner’s grace-and-favour flat in Admiralty House in central London is actually her main home, where she spends most of her time as a minister, and have called for her to cover the council tax bill there.

Rayner is entitled to use the flat due to her role as deputy prime minister.

The Ministerial Code states that where a minister is given an official residence, they must personally pay any council tax.

However, the Cabinet Office has previously said that where a minister occupies an official residence as a second home, the relevant government department pays the council tax for the property.

It said this had been the case “for successive administrations”.

The BBC has approached the Cabinet Office and Rayner’s team for a response to the Conservatives calling for her to pay the council tax for the Admiralty House flat.