Ex-Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner has lashed out at Sir Keir Starmer with a stark warning about voters “losing faith” in his Labour Government.
The exiled former Deputy Prime Minister demanded that Labour makes clear “whose side we are on”.
Ms Rayner launched the intervention over stalled housing reforms, pressing Sir Keir to deliver on Labour’s election commitment to cap ground rents for leaseholders across England and Wales.
She waded into a dispute between Housing Secretary Steve Reed and Chancellor Rachel Reeves over whether the Government should honour its manifesto promise to limit annual charges for existing leaseholders.
A draft leasehold bill that was due to be published last year but was postponed after Treasury officials grew concerned that capping ground rents could hit pension funds holding freehold properties.
Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook has been developing the legislation since Labour took office, including provisions to limit ground rents to £250 annually for current leaseholders.
The Chancellor fears the proposed cap could deter property investors, placing her in direct conflict with Mr Reed, who has backed the reforms.
Addressing the row, Ms Rayner cautioned that failure to act would cause poorer households to “lose faith that anything could change” and urged the Prime Minister to demonstrate “whose side we are on”.
Angela Rayner has hit out at Keir Starmer as she warned Labour risks ‘losing faith of voters’
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“Over recent decades … ordinary homeowners have increasingly been charged high and escalating amounts of ground rent, leaving them in financial distress and often unable to sell or re-mortgage their homes,” she wrote in The Guardian.
“Labour made a promise to leaseholders that we would fix this injustice, but ministers are currently subjected to furious lobbying from wealthy investors trying to water this manifesto commitment down.
“There are those who argue we cannot act on our promise as it could risk a backlash from investors, including pension funds. It’s hardly surprising – the system works just fine for them.”
Ms Rayner added: “They get an annual return for doing absolutely nothing, they can raise ground rents and pile up service charges without transparency and with total impunity, regardless of the devastation it causes to families.”
The former Deputy Prime Minister waded in over a Cabinet row on annual charges for existing leaseholders
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The Ashton-under-Lyne MP was not the only Labour figure to address the Government’s split on housing reform.
Ruth Cadbury, who represents Brentford & Isleworth, said she was “very keen that momentum isn’t lost.”
“My constituents and those of us who have been working on this issue were disappointed that the bill hadn’t been published, so I hope it is published very soon,” she added.
However, Ms Rayner’s comments come amid swirling rumours around Westminster about a potential leadership bid.
The intervention comes amid speculation Ms Rayner could launch a leadership bid
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PAThe former deputy Labour leader resigned in early September after it emerged she had avoided £40,000 in stamp duty when purchasing her flat in Hove.
Following a period of self-imposed purdah, she has become increasingly vocal and visible in recent months.
In December, she urged Labour MPs not to “blink or buckle” on the Employment Rights Bill amid concerns her flagship legislation would be watered down.
A source familiar with Ms Rayner’s moves said she was “on manoeuvres” and was “getting her ducks in a row” for a leadership bid, telling The Telegraph: “The unions will back her and help her.”