Angela Rayner has been cleared of criminal wrongdoing over claims she avoided tax on the sale of a home, with the Labour deputy leader criticising what she called the “desperate tactics” of Conservative MPs who urged police to investigate.
In a statement, Greater Manchester police (GMP) said any allegations that Rayner should have paid capital gains tax or council tax would not fall under their jurisdiction, and that they had shared details of their investigation with the local council, Stockport, and HMRC. The Guardian understands that neither of these bodies plan to take action.
Rayner had said she would resign as deputy leader if she was found to have broken the law by avoiding tax when she sold the former council home she owned for a profit in 2015. The Conservatives had put pressure on police to look into claims that she had wrongly designated the home as her principal residence, and that it was wrongly listed on the electoral register.
“Following allegations about Angela Rayner MP, Greater Manchester police has completed a thorough, carefully considered and proportionate investigation,” a spokesperson for the force said. “We have concluded that no further police action will be taken.
“The investigation originated from complaints made by Mr James Daly MP directly to GMP. Subsequent further contact with GMP by members of the public, and claims made by individuals featured in media reporting, indicated a strong public interest in the need for allegations to be investigated.
“Matters involving council tax and personal tax do not fall into the jurisdiction of policing. GMP has liaised with Stockport council and information about our investigation has been shared with them. Details of our investigation have also been shared with His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs.”
It is understood that HMRC also looked into the issue, at Rayner’s request, and has confirmed there is no capital gains tax liability, meaning no action will be taken.
Stockport council said it had “reviewed and responded to all correspondence relating to this matter”, including from police, adding: “We have also concluded that no further action will be taken on behalf of the council.”
Rayner said: “We have seen the Conservative party use this playbook before – reporting political opponents to the police during election campaigns to distract from their dire record. I am grateful to all those who have stood by and supported me and my family.”
Keir Starmer said he was “obviously pleased”, adding: “I never doubted that Angela hadn’t done anything wrong.”
Starmer was subject to his own police investigation over alleged wrongdoing, one also heavily pushed by Conservative MPs. He and Rayner were cleared in 2022 by Durham police after claims they broke lockdown rules by having beer and a takeaway curry with Labour staff in 2021.
Michael Barton, the former chief constable of Durham police,said such inquiries were concerning. “When did party politicians start thinking it was a good idea to pressurise the police – sometimes it looks like a commission – into fanciful investigations when the police are under such huge strain?
“It boils down to trying to use the police to embarrass their political rivals and they should know better. I can see the pressure chief constables are under from senior politicians and certain allies in the media.”
In 2007, before Rayner was an MP, she bought the £79,000 property using the right-to-buy scheme, getting a 25% discount off the property’s asking price. A year later Rayner had a second child, with her then-partner Mark Rayner, a Unison official. He already owned a home about a mile away.
Their son was born prematurely and spent eight months in intensive care. The couple kept their separate properties during this period. In 2010, they got married, a year after having their second child.
In March 2015, Rayner sold her home for £127,500, making a profit of £48,500. Because it was designated as her main residence, the profit was not liable for capital gains tax. The allegation by some Conservatives was that this was misleading, as she primarily lived at her then-husband’s address.
Married couples who have individual properties can have only one main residence between them under tax law.
