ANGELA Rayner’s bid to cling to her job in an unpaid tax row was dealt a hammer blow last night by her own solicitors.
The Deputy PM — who could today — had tried to blame bad legal advice for
Deputy PM Angela Rayner’s lawyers said they did not offer advice and are being made ‘scapegoats’ in her unpaid tax row
Keir Starmer is under increasing pressure to sack Rayner
Rayner has been mocked in a viral rap video on TikTok ANGE'S HOUSE MUSIC
By Ava Solieri
IT’S a viral hit — but an AI-created rap track will fall flat with nightclub fan Angela Rayner.
The Deputy PM’s computer-generated double is shown dancing in the House of Commons in a skit titled How Many Homes Can Rayner Buy?
She is also seen flashing the cash, wearing a fur coat over her tracksuit and smoking two cigarettes at once.
The clip has already racked up hundreds of thousands of views online. Lyrics include: “Bought me one house, bought me two; Flip another flat, taxman no clue; £80K saved with a Brighton tan; Dodgin’ more duty than the average man.
“How many homes, I’ll name ’em all; Big Ange dancin’ in the Commons hall; Taxman cryin’, Rayner smilin’; One rule for me, none for thee!”
But the small family firm she used, Verrico and Associates, said it had based its calculations on info Rayner herself provided. The firm added it had been made “scapegoats”.
paid £30,000 instead of the full £70,000 on her pad in Hove, near Brighton — which
refused five times yesterday to say if he will sack his No2, insisting he would act on the findings of a sleaze probe which could come back as early as today.
But the controversy deepened with a damning intervention by the boss of conveyancing firm Verrico & Associates, who said they have been made a scapegoat and she “had arrows stuck in her back” over the scandal.
Joanna Verrico said: “We did not and never have given tax or trust advice.
“It’s something we always refer our clients to an accountant or tax expert for.
“The stamp duty for the Hove flat was calculated using own online calculator based on the figures and the information provided by Ms Rayner.
“That’s what we used and it told us we had to pay £30,000 based on the information provided to us.
“We believe that we did everything correctly and in good faith.
“Everything was exactly as it should be.”
She added: “We probably are being made scapegoats for all this and I’ve got the arrows stuck in my back to show it.”
Meanwhile, Tories attacked Sir Keir for not firing Ms Rayner, who they labelled a “hypocrite” after she called for multiple sackings over tax issues when she was in opposition.
The PM said he would wait for the report from the ethics adviser before deciding what to do about his deputy, who is also the Housing Secretary.
But he repeatedly refused to say whether he would sack her if she was found to have breached the ministerial code.
He told the BBC: “There’s a clear procedure.
“I strengthened that procedure.
“I’m expecting a result pretty quickly.
“I do want it to be comprehensive . . . and then of course I’ll act on whatever the report is that’s put in front of me.”
Ms Rayner’s purchase saw her nicknamed “Three Pads” as it came on top of her family constituency home in Greater Manchester and her grace-and-favour central London pad.
Before buying it, she removed herself from the deeds of her family property, though that is still listed as her primary residence.
This meant she did not pay the full second-home stamp duty.
Graffiti outside her new seaside apartment building yesterday read “tax exader”.
Daubings over the road also said: “Tax evader Rayner” and “Rayner tax avoidance.”
Before buyiung the £800,000 flat, she removed herself from the deeds of her constituency home, so did not pay the full second home stamp duty.
It emerged yesterday she sought new legal advice last Friday evening following days of speculation about whether she had paid enough tax.
On Monday evening, her advisers appeared to suggest that previous advice had been incorrect and she owed more.
The Labour cabinet minister’s new apartment building was daubed with graffiti branding her a ‘tax evader’
The Tories vented their fury over the hypocrisy of Ms Rayner, who called for multiple sackings over tax issues when she was in opposition
The PM appeared ready to ditch his deputy, who is also the Housing Secretary
But earlier that day Sir Keir defended Ms Rayner, saying she was a victim of a briefing war, despite being aware she sought advice.
It was unclear whether she got advice from the most senior civil servant in the Housing Department.
It was only on Wednesday that she referred herself to the sleaze watchdog, saying she made a “mistake”.
Angela Rayner: What happens next?
By , Political Correspondent
ANGELA Rayner’s political fate now rests squarely in the hands of Sir Laurie Magnus, who is investigating whether she breached the ministerial code by dodging paying the correct stamp duty.
His verdict will decide if she survives as Sir Keir Starmer’s number two or is shown the door.
The PM has pledged to abide by Sir Laurie’s ruling, meaning the Deputy PM’s career could be in the balance within days.
The outcome could drop as early as tomorrow morning, though it might drag into next week.
If Ms Rayner is fully cleared, she will most likely be safe — and Sir Keir will breathe a slight sigh of relief.
The Labour leader has worked hard to repair their once-rocky relationship and knows it’s far less dangerous to keep her inside the tent than raging against him from the outside.
But if Sir Laurie rules she breached the ministerial code, Sir Keir will have no choice but to act.
Having hounded Tory MPs who broke the rules, he cannot afford the charge of hypocrisy by letting his own deputy off the hook.
There’s also a murkier middle ground.
Sir Laurie may decide Ms Rayner technically did nothing wrong, but that the public perception of impropriety is damaging enough to force her out – the same fate that befell ex-Treasury minister Tulip Siddiq.
Even if ejected from government, Ms Rayner would remain Deputy Labour leader. That title is in the gift of party members, not Sir Keir, and can only be changed through a full-blown leadership contest.
So, the stakes are high. Ms Rayner could emerge wounded but clinging on, or cast out of government altogether.
But either way, the row has already shown just how precarious Labour’s time in power has been.
Chancellor yesterday pointedly said it was vital for “all of us” to understand the rules but had “full confidence” in her colleague.
Meanwhile, Ms Rayner yesterday met England’s mayors at 16th-century Chatsworth House in the Derbyshire Dales, but avoided the media.
One source said it was “business as usual” for the embattled minister, who was “laughing and joking”.
Tory leader blasted the PM’s refusal to fire her.
She said: “How many final straws can there be for Angela Rayner? She must resign or Keir Starmer must finally find the backbone to sack her.”
Former Shadow Chancellor said Ms Rayner has been “hypocritical” by not leaving office.
The Good Morning Britain host, married to Home Secretary , told the Political Currency podcast: “She was the person who was on the moral high ground demanding others resign.”
A still from the viral AI-generated Rayner video
Cartoon Rayner smoking cigarettes on a small boat filled with money
The viral video mocking the Deputy PM shows scenes inside an AI Parliament
AI Rayner flaunts her money at the camera HMRC site's easy advice
By
BASIC tax advice on a government website states Ms Rayner was not eligible to swerve the higher stamp duty rate.
The Deputy PM has admitted underpaying up to £40,000 on her second home in Hove.
She blamed the “mistake” on legal advice, claiming lawyers indicated she was not liable for the stamp duty surcharge as she had sold her stake in her constituency property to a trust.
However, HM Revenue & Customs advice on an official website states that if you own more than one home worth £40,000 or more, the higher rate applies to your new purchase.
Follow-up legal advice, sought after the scandal broke, confirmed the position for Ms Rayner.
Shadow Culture Secretary Nigel Huddleston said: “No reasonable and sensible person would need to seek expert tax advice to understand that this tax situation was dodgy.”
