'I've been exonerated': Angela Rayner says HMRC has cleared her over flat stamp duty

"Former Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner has said she has been cleared by HMRC of wrongdoing over her tax affairs. She said she had been "exonerated" of the accusation she had "deliberately sought to avoid tax" in a statement on Thursday. Rayner is seen as a potential challenger to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, as he battles to save his premiership following the Labour Party's disastrous local election results."

"Speaking to the Guardian about the tax saga that led to her resignation, Rayner said voters had been "left with the impression that I somehow tried to avoid or worse had been reckless or careless in my actions". "Whereas now hopefully people can see that actually it's a really complex area of law," she said. In her statement Rayner said: "I have always sought to act with integrity, and I believe politicians should be held to high standards - that is why I resigned from government and cooperated fully with HMRC.""

"In an interview with the Guardian, the prime minister's former deputy did not rule out running in any Labour leadership race but said she would not "trigger" a contest. She said: "I'll play my part in doing everything we possibly can to deliver the change, because it's not a personal ambition, I know the difference it makes." The news was first published by the Guardian newspaper and ITV News on Thursday morning."

"Rayner said she welcomed the HMRC's conclusion that "there wasn't any wrongdoing and that I didn't try to avoid paying tax, and I wasn't careless in the way I conducted myself". At the time, the prime minister's ethics adviser said Rayner "acted with integrity" but had breached the ministerial code. He said she did get legal advice when buying the property, but failed to seek further expert tax advice as recommended."

Angela Rayner said HMRC cleared her of wrongdoing related to her tax affairs. She said she was exonerated of the accusation that she deliberately sought to avoid tax. She said she resigned from government and cooperated fully with HMRC, and that she always sought to act with integrity. She said voters had been left with the impression that she tried to avoid tax or acted recklessly or carelessly, and that people could now see tax law is complex. She said she welcomed HMRC’s conclusion that there was no wrongdoing, she did not try to avoid paying tax, and she was not careless in how she conducted herself. She also said she would not trigger a Labour leadership contest.

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