Keir Starmer was today asked to use his tenure as UK attorney general and investigate the tax affairs of his own Labor deputy, Angela Rayner.
Sir Keir, the former director of public prosecutions (DPP), has been accused of being “not sufficiently interested” in the row that engulfed his number two over his ownership of properties in Manchester.
Ms Rayner is facing scrutiny over claims she was able to avoid capital gains tax on the sale of her own home and broke election law by falsely reporting where she was really living. She denies both claims.
The deputy leader of the Labor Party claims she received legal advice that she had done nothing wrong in the early 2010s – before she was an MP. But she refused to publish this advice.
Sir Keir today suggested “no one is interested” in the issue and said people were more worried about the state of the NHS.
Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride told LBC today: “What surprises and confuses me slightly is the fact that Sir Keir Starmer, as a former DPP and quite a legal thinker and curious, did not see fit to ask him (Rayner) to show him this advice so that he could draw his own conclusion on the matter.
“I’m a little confused about this…why aren’t you interested enough in this to ask Angela Rayner to provide you with details and then you can also reassure us that nothing untoward happened? “
Sir Keir, the former director of public prosecutions (DPP), has been accused of being “not sufficiently interested” in the row that engulfed his number two over his ownership of properties in Manchester.
Sir Keir today suggested “no one is interested” in the issue and said people were more worried about the state of the NHS.
Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride told LBC today: “What surprises and confuses me slightly is the fact that Sir Keir Starmer, as a former DPP and quite a legal thinker and curious, did not see fit to ask him (Rayner) to show him this advice so that he could draw his own conclusion on the matter.
This morning, during a visit to the West Midlands, Sir Keir told reporters: “Angela Rayner has received countless questions about this. She answered them all. She said she was very happy to answer any further questions from the police or any of the authorities.
“I don’t need to consult a lawyer. My team saw it. But I will say this, that on a day when the A&E figures – people are waiting over 24 hours in A&E, we now know they are 10 times higher than five years ago – the idea that the Conservatives want to be Focusing on what Angela Rayner, how much time she spent with her ex-husband 10 years ago, I can tell you here in this hospital, no one cares about that.
“They are very, very interested in what are you going to do to solve the A&E problem caused by this government?
He added: It’s not appropriate for me to see (Ms Rayner’s legal advice) but I know this, that if you wait more than 24 hours for A&E you are much more interested in why the Government is not absolutely laser-focused on this, which they should be, rather than continuing this smear against Angela Rayner and the time she spent with her husband over 10 years ago.
Ms Rayner faces fresh rules-breaking charges after the Mail on Sunday revealed social media posts which cast further doubt on her insistence she lived apart from her husband and children for their five first years of marriage.
In one post, she said she had “just come home” – but the backdrop is her then-husband’s Stockport home, where she claims she does not live.
The Mail on Sunday studied dozens of Ms Rayner’s open social media posts, all showing her life – with her children and cats – at the Lowndes Lane address of her then-husband Mark.
None of the photos show her at Vicarage Road, a mile away, where she was on the electoral roll until the old council house was sold in 2015.
Ms Rayner could face a criminal conviction and fine for false declaration on the electoral roll if it turns out she did not actually live in Vicarage Road, as her neighbors claim.
Her brother, Darren, is said to have lived there in recent years and described the Labor deputy leader as the “landlady”.
There are also questions about whether she had to pay taxes on the sale, as married couples can normally only count one property as their primary residence at a time.
She has refused to release tax advice that she says exonerates her.
Last night, Conservative Party chairman Richard Holden led a clamor for calls from Tory MPs for Ms Rayner to answer “simple” questions about her property affairs.
In a letter to Sir Keir and Ms Rayner, sent last night and seen by the Mail, Mr Holden said: ‘You are committed to the standards of public life, but your failure of you and your deputy to respond to the simplest questions on this subject makes a mockery of these assertions.
“Given the obvious public interest in this matter, your refusal to investigate thoroughly to date, or even to bother to consult the legal advice Ms. Rayner claims to have received, constitutes a damning indictment against your leadership.”
Ms Rayner was defended by a Labor colleague Abena Oppong-Asare today. She told LBC that the deputy chief had been the victim of “Personal attacks” and “mud throwing”, adding: “Angela has said publicly, and she is not someone to hide, she is a transparent person, she says she did nothing wrong , I believe him.”
“What concerns me is that people are asking to post his personal stuff from 15 years ago, it’s a distraction.”
“What concerns me is that the direction that politics is going…is that we’re seeing personal attacks on certain individuals, mostly women and politicians of color. We really should We only focus on the policies that people care about, that’s really what people want to hear, not putdowns from politicians.
Sir Keir Starmer is a former Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP)
A social media post from Ms. Rayner from March 20, 2014, in which you can see her patchwork sofa
The same chef ornament can be seen in this photo of the kitchen of the Lowndes Lane home.
Last night, Conservative Deputy Speaker Jonathan Gullis said: “It’s time Angela Rayner came clean about where she actually lived between 2010 and 2015.
“As more evidence comes to light that appears to contradict Angela Rayner’s account, it becomes increasingly clear that the British people cannot trust the deputy leader of the Labor Party.”
Former Conservative minister David Jones said: “Keir Starmer should insist that Angela Rayner be completely transparent about the sale of her house.
“She should also publish the advice she says she received from her accountant.
“Angela Rayner has been quick to criticize conservatives in the past. She must now demonstrate that she herself is beyond reproach.
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