LONDON (AP) \u2014 U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer shook up his Cabinet Friday after his top deputy stepped down over a tax error on a recent house purchase, leaving a big hole in the center-left Labour government.<\/p>\n
Foreign Secretary David Lammy was moved to replace Angela Rayner as deputy prime minister, and also took the justice portfolio. Yvette Cooper moved from the Home Office to become foreign secretary while the justice secretary, Shabana Mahmood, became home secretary. <\/p>\n
Treasury chief Rachel Reeves was kept in post, meaning that the three major offices of state below the prime minister will be occupied by women for the first time in history.<\/p>\n
The changes came after Rayner handed in her resignation to Starmer because an independent inquiry concluded that she hadn’t met the ethical standards required of government ministers over her recent purchase of an apartment in Hove, on England\u2019s south coast. The report concluded that she should have sought more specific advice, even though she acted in good faith.<\/p>\n
\u201cI take full responsibility for this error,” Rayner said in her resignation letter to Starmer. \u201cI would like to take this opportunity to repeat that it was never my intention to do anything other than pay the right amount.\u201d<\/p>\n
In response, Starmer voiced his sadness, but said that Rayner had made the right decision to stand down.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have nothing but admiration for you and huge respect for your achievements in politics,\u201d Starmer wrote. The handwritten letter signed off \u201cwith very best wishes and with real sadness.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rayner is a hugely popular member of the Labour Party and was widely tipped to be a potential successor to Starmer. In addition to resigning as deputy prime minister, Rayner quit as deputy leader of the party, meaning that members will have to select someone new.<\/p>\n
Starmer will be hoping that his government changes will allow him to seize back the political agenda following days of speculation surrounding Rayner\u2019s future.<\/p>\n
His government has seen its support fall sharply since its landslide victory in last year\u2019s election, following a string of missteps over welfare reform and mounting public concern about immigration.<\/p>\n
Rayner will remain a U.K. lawmaker on the back benches. She referred herself to the independent adviser on ministerial standards, Laurie Magnus, on Wednesday, who delivered his report to Starmer on Friday.<\/p>\n
Though Magnus concluded that Rayner had \u201cacted with integrity and with a dedicated and exemplary commitment to public service,\u201c he said that \u201cwith deep regret\u201d she had breached the ministers\u2019 code of conduct. <\/p>\n
In the U.K., levies are charged on property purchases, with higher charges due on more expensive homes and secondary residences. Reports have suggested that Rayner saved 40,000 pounds (nearly $54,000) by not paying the appropriate levy, known as a stamp duty, on her 800,000-pound ($1 million) purchase.<\/p>\n
Rayner, 45, had sought to explain that her \u201ccomplex living arrangements\u201d related to her divorce in 2023 and the fact that her son has \u201clifelong disabilities\u201d underlay her failure to pay the appropriate tax. <\/p>\n
In her resignation letter, Rayner said she also had to \u201cconsider the significant toll that the ongoing pressure of the media is taking on my family.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rayner\u2019s journey from teenage single mother to trade union official to lawmaker and deputy prime minister is a rarity in British politics.<\/p>\n
Her no-nonsense attitude and plain-speaking manner have been a distinct \u2014 and politically useful \u2014 contrast to the more pragmatic, lawyerly Starmer and she will be hard to replace. She had the ability to connect with sections of the public that Starmer had struggled with since he became prime minister.<\/p>\n
Rayner, who also held the housing brief, had often railed against those who deliberately underpay tax, particularly those in the preceding Conservative administration, which Labour replaced in July 2024.<\/p>\n
Her previous comments had opened her up to charges of hypocrisy, particularly from current Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch, who said that Rayner’s position had been \u201cuntenable for days.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cThe truth is simple, she dodged tax,” Badenoch said in a video posted on social media. \u201cShe lied about it.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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