Embattled UK Labour government faces additional unrest as Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner steps down from her position
Britain's Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner Resigns Amidst Tax Scandal
Britain's Deputy Prime Minister, Angela Rayner, has resigned following a scandal over her failure to pay the correct amount of property tax. This resignation is another challenge for the United Kingdom's increasingly unpopular leader, Keir Starmer, and comes as a blow to the Labour party, which is currently facing a rising challenge from the upstart anti-immigration Reform UK party.
Rayner, who served as Britain's housing minister, had not paid enough property taxes on an apartment in Hove on England's southern coast, which she bought earlier this year. The apartment was purchased for £800,000 (nearly $1.1 million) in May 2021. Rayner claimed she did not need to pay the higher rate because she had already sold her Greater Manchester constituency home and put the money into a trust for her children. However, she only paid £30,000 ($40,000) in stamp duty, which is lower than the higher rate that would have amounted to £70,000 (£94,000) for a second home.
The scandal surrounding Rayner's tax issue snowballed into a national scandal, with critics saying her position had become untenable due to the housing crisis in Britain and Labour's consideration of raising taxes, including on property. Rayner's past criticism of Conservative politicians' tax affairs also made her position more difficult, according to tax expert Dan Neidle, who nevertheless voiced modest sympathy for Rayner due to the complexity of the UK tax system.
However, Neidle conceded that Rayner had made her position more difficult due to her past criticism of Conservative politicians' tax affairs. This is particularly true in light of Rayner's call for the resignation of former chancellor Nadhim Zahawi after he confirmed he paid nearly £5 million ($6.7 million) to authorities to settle his tax affairs.
Rayner grew up poor on the outskirts of Manchester and became a mother at 16 before entering politics and training as a carer for older people and working as a trade union representative. Her resignation has cost the Labour party one of its most talented politicians.
Meanwhile, the Reform UK party is holding a national conference in Birmingham on Friday and was reported to be currently leading the polls ahead of Labour. The topping of Rayner caps off what has been a dreadful summer for Labour, in which the party has lost more ground in the polls to the insurgent Reform UK.
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