Tories call for investigation as Reeves admits rental ‘mistake’ | Politics News
The Conservatives have called for an investigation after Rachel Reeves put her family home up for rent without obtaining the necessary licence.
The Daily Mail reported that the chancellor rented her family home in Dulwich when she moved into Number 11 Downing Street, but was unaware she had to obtain a licence to do so.
Some London boroughs require private landlords to obtain a specific kind of licence if they are putting their property up for rent – including Southwark Council, where Ms Reeves’ home is listed.
The newspaper said Ms Reeves had now applied for a licence.
A spokesperson for Ms Reeves said: “Since becoming chancellor, Rachel Reeves has rented out her family home through a lettings agency.
“She had not been made aware of the licensing requirement, but as soon as it was brought to her attention, she took immediate action and has applied for the licence.
“This was an inadvertent mistake and in the spirit of transparency, she has made the prime minister, the independent adviser on ministerial standards and the parliamentary commissioner for standards aware.”
It is understood that Sir Laurie Magnus, the ethics adviser, has not launched an investigation into Ms Reeves.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer must launch a full investigation.
Daisy Cooper, deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, said the chancellor was adding to the government’s “list of scandals”.
“The chancellor is meant to be delivering growth but the only thing she appears to be growing is the government’s list of scandals,” she said.
“Just weeks before the budget, this risks seriously undermining confidence in this government and its ability to focus on the urgent tasks at hand.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Chancellor faces tough budget choices
The development comes weeks before Ms Reeves delivers her budget on 26 November.
She is rumoured to be considering a series of tax hikes, including a new tax on the sale of homes worth more than £500,000 to replace stamp duty.
Read more:
What tax rises and spending cuts could Reeves announce?
Why is there a budget black hole?
Under the proposal, sellers, instead of buyers, would be responsible for paying the tax.
The chancellor is understood to be looking at an annual 1% charge on the amount a property’s value exceeds £2m – a £10,000-a-year levy for homes worth £3m.
Another proposal would see capital gains tax (CGT) charged when someone sells their main home, based on the amount it has increased in value during ownership.
Reports suggest this would only be applied to the most expensive properties, with a possible threshold of £1.5m, which would affect about 120,000 homeowners and higher-rate taxpayers getting CGT bills of nearly £200,000.
