UK deputy prime minister resigns

LONDON — U.K. deputy prime minister Angela Rayner resigned Friday after an independent inquiry found that she fell short of the standards expected of government ministers over a tax error on a recent house purchase. Rayner, who acknowledged on Wednesday that she didn't pay enough tax on her purchase of an apartment in Hove, on England's south coast, conceded that she should have sought more specific advice, while stressing that the report found that she had acted in good faith. "I take full responsibility for this error," she said in her resignation letter to Prime Minister Keir Starmer. "I would like to take this opportunity to repeat that it was never my intention to do anything other than pay the right amount." In response, Starmer voiced his sadness, but said that Rayner had made the right decision to stand down. "I have nothing but admiration for you and huge respect for your achievements in politics," Starmer wrote. The handwritten letter signed off "with very best wishes and with real sadness." 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. Though Magnus concluded that Rayner had "acted with integrity and with a dedicated and exemplary commitment to public service," he said that "with deep regret" she had breached the ministers' code of conduct. 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. Rayner, 45, had sought to explain that her "complex living arrangements" related to her divorce in 2023 and the fact that her son has "lifelong disabilities" underlay her failure to pay the appropriate tax. In her resignation letter, Rayner said she also had to "consider the significant toll that the ongoing pressure of the media is taking on my family." Rayner's journey from teenage single mother to trade union official to lawmaker and deputy prime minister is a rarity in British politics. Her no-nonsense attitude and plain-speaking manner have been a distinct — and politically useful — 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. Rayner, who held the housing brief in the Labour government, had often railed against those who deliberately underpay tax, particularly those in the preceding Conservative administration, which Labour replaced in July 2024. 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 "untenable for days." "The truth is simple, she dodged tax," Badenoch said in a video posted on social media. "She lied about it." 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. Starmer is undertaking a shuffle of his Cabinet following Rayner's resignation. He will be hoping that the political agenda can now move on after days of speculation surrounding Rayner's future. His Labour government has seen its support fall sharply since it won last year's election following a string of missteps, particularly on welfare reform, and ongoing concerns about immigration.