It comes amid a tax hike on second properties
Angela Rayner has come under fire over a new property purchase(Image: Wiktor Szymanowicz/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
Allies of Angela Rayner have defended the housing secretary’s purchase of an £800,000 property on the south coast amid a tax hike on second homes.
Reports emerged over the weekend that the Ashton-under-Lyne MP had bought a seaside apartment in Hove, East Sussex.
The purchase has been described as Ms Rayner’s ‘third home’ – although one of these properties is a ‘grace-and-favour’ flat at Admiralty House, in Whitehall, a ministerial residence which the Deputy Prime Minister can use, but does not own.
Sources close to Ms Rayner have now reportedly claimed she will be using the Hove property as a base while working in London – despite the seaside town being more than 50 miles from Westminster.
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The Telegraph reports that the property is not expected to be rented out while Ms Rayner stays at her primary home, in the Ashton-under-Lyne constituency.
It comes as the Treasury introduced a premium on council tax in April, giving authorities the power to charge up to twice the normal rate on second homes.
Ms Rayner’s allies claim she will be using the property as a base while working in London(Image: Yui Mok/PA Wire)
In a blog post about the policy after it was introduced, a spokesperson for Ms Rayner’s department, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, said: “Excessive concentrations of second homes in some areas of the country can impact the availability and affordability of homes to buy and rent.
“This can translate into problems for families, public services, and the local economy. We do not think it is right for houses to lie empty while families struggle to find a home.”
Ms Rayner’s political rivals have suggested the Hove purchase is a sign of ‘hypocrisy’ given the Government’s stance on second homes.
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Posting on X on Sunday, shadow foreign secretary Priti Patel said: “One rule for this condescending hypocritical Labour minister, and a totally different set of rules for the hard pressed taxpaying silent majority of Britain.”
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