POLICE are investigating Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner.
The new probe comes after James Daly, deputy chairman of the Conservative Party, made Greater Manchester Police (GMP) aware of neighbours contradicting Rayner’s claims that a property, separate from her husband’s, was her main residency.
The Bury North MP alleged she may have made a false declaration about where she was living on the electoral register.
GMP previously said it would not be investigating the allegations, but following a complaint from Daly, the police confirmed it had opened an investigation.
A spokesperson for the force said: “We’re investigating whether any offences have been committed.
“This follows a reassessment of the information provided to us by Mr Daly (below).”
The deputy Labour leader has faced scrutiny about whether she paid the right amount of tax on the 2015 sale of her council house because of confusion over whether it was her principal residence.
Rayner has rejected the allegation.
The Labour Party said it remains confident Rayner has complied with the rules, and that she “welcomes the chance to set out the facts with the police”.
Labour leader Keir Starmer has previously said the Conservatives are “chasing a smear” when asked about the deputy leader.
Rayner had also previously said there had been “no wrongdoing” and that it was a “non-story manufactured to try and smear me".
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Starmer declined to say on Friday if Rayner should resign as deputy leader if she is found to have broken the law.
He told ITV: “She’s given answers on the issue many, many times over, she’s clearly said she’ll co-operate with the police.
“I do think now is the time to let the police get on with their investigation, get on with the work they need to do, she’ll co-operate with that which is exactly what you’d expect of her.”
Claims about Rayner’s tax affairs first emerged in a biography by former Tory party treasurer Michael Ashcroft.
The unauthorised biography alleges that Rayner bought her former council house, in Vicarage Road in Stockport, Greater Manchester, with a 25% discount in 2007 under the right-to-buy scheme.
Rayner is estimated to have made a £48,500 profit when she sold the Vicarage Road property for £127,500 eight years later.
Government guidance says a tenant can apply to buy their council home through the right-to-buy scheme if it is their “only or main home”.
Rayner’s husband was listed at another address in Lowndes Lane, around a mile away, which had also been bought under the right-to-buy scheme.
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In the same year as her wedding, Rayner is said to have re-registered the births of her two youngest children, giving her address as where her husband resided.
Rayner has insisted that Vicarage Road was her “principal property” despite her husband living at Lowndes Lane at the time.
However, neighbours have reportedly disputed Rayner’s claim that she lived apart from her husband at Vicarage Road.
Starmer had previously defended Rayner and said people were more interested in “problems caused by this Government”.
He said: “Angela Rayner has been asked no end of questions about this. She’s answered them all. “She said she’s very happy to answer any further questions from the police or from any of the authorities.
“I don’t need to see the legal advice. My team has seen it.”
Tax experts have estimated, while Rayner may not have owed anything in capital gains tax following the sale depending on her residency situation, there are circumstances in which she could have owed as much as £3500 to the taxman.
A Labour spokesperson said: “Angela welcomes the chance to set out the facts with the police.
“We remain completely confident that Angela has complied with the rules at all times and it’s now appropriate to let the police do its work.”
In a statement released on Friday evening, Rayner added: "We have seen the Tory Party use this playbook before – reporting political opponents to the police during election campaigns to distract from their record. I will say as I did before - if I committed a criminal offence, I would of course do the right thing and step down.
"The British public deserves politicians who know the rules apply to them.
"The questions raised relate to a time before I was an MP and I have set out my family’s circumstances and taken expert tax and legal advice. I look forward to setting out the facts with the relevant authorities at the earliest opportunity.”
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