STORY
Angela Rayner has refused to return the £16,876 ministerial severance payment she received after resigning as Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary over the controversy surrounding unpaid stamp duty on her Hove property. The Labour MP has now returned to the Cabinet as Housing Secretary under Prime Minister Andy Burnham, prompting accusations that she is benefiting from arrangements she previously criticised when Conservative ministers received similar payments.
Asked on BBC Radio 5 Live whether she would repay the money, Rayner said she would not, arguing that she had worked in Government for a substantial period and then remained outside it for almost a year. She contrasted her position with Conservative ministers who returned to office within weeks of receiving severance payments. Rayner previously said it showed a “staggering lack of shame” for former Conservative ministers to accept large payouts after leaving office, while Labour later backed proposals requiring some returning ministers to repay the corresponding portion of their severance