Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner saved £40,000 in stamp duty on a seaside flat in Hove after declaring it as her main home, it has emerged.
The Telegraph reports that Rayner removed her name from the deeds of her Greater Manchester property just weeks before purchasing the £800,000 flat in East Sussex. By designating the new property as her main residence, she reduced her stamp duty bill from £70,000 to £30,000.
However, official records show Rayner also informed Tameside Council that her house in Ashton remains her primary residence, while telling Brighton and Hove Council that her Hove property is a second home for council tax purposes.
The Deputy Prime Minister’s actions are entirely legal but raise questions over whether she deliberately structured her affairs to minimise both stamp duty and council tax.
A government minister on Friday insisted Rayner’s arrangements were “not an issue”, but some within Labour expressed unease.
One Labour MP told The Telegraph: “For ordinary people who are struggling, it doesn’t correspond to how people live their lives. She’s got a house in Ashton, a flat in London and now she’s got a house in Brighton. These options aren’t available to ordinary people… It breeds resentment.”
The MP warned the issue could add to public distrust in politics at a difficult time for the Labour government.
Rayner has not yet publicly commented on the matter.