The firm Angela Rayner used to buy her seaside flat has denied giving her tax advice and claimed they have been made “scapegoats”. The Deputy Prime Minister blamed incorrect “advice from lawyers” for not paying enough stamp duty when she bought the property in Hove earlier this year.
But the conveyancing firm, Verrico and Associates, insisted its lawyers “never” gave Ms Rayner tax advice. In a statement, managing director Joanna Verrico told The Telegraph: “We acted for Ms Rayner when she purchased the flat in Hove. 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 HMRC’s 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.
“We probably are being made scapegoats for all this, and I have got the arrows stuck in my back to show it. We are not an inexperienced firm, but we’re not qualified to give advice on trust and tax matters and we advise clients to seek expert advice on these.”
It comes as Ms Rayner, who is also the Housing Secretary, is facing an investigation into whether she broke the ministerial code after she admitted to underpaying stamp duty on the property purchase.
She has been under mounting pressure in recent weeks after reports emerged she had saved £40,000 in stamp duty by not paying the higher rate reserved for additional home purchases.
She referred herself to independent standards adviser Sir Laurie Magnus on Wednesday.
Sir Keir Starmer today declined to say if he will sack her if the probe finds that she broke the rules.
The Prime Minister said “of course” he will act on the findings of the investigation.
But he would not be drawn on whether he would fire his deputy if Sir Laurie finds that a breach of ministerial rules took place.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said: “This is yet more damning evidence that Angela Rayner has not been honest with the British public.
“From the start we’ve had nothing but excuses, deflections and lies. Enough is enough.
“How many final straws can there be for Angela Rayner? She must resign or Keir Starmer must finally find the backbone to sack her.”
