James Cleverly: With the Labour eyeing our homes as a piggy bank, of course Rayner had to go

Sir James Cleverly is shadow secretary of state for housing communities and local government, former Home Secretary and Foreign Secretary, and MP for Braintree. 

Starmer had to get rid of Angela Rayner.

With the property tax-hikes he and Reeves have planned Rayner’s failure to pay the right Stamp Duty made her resignation inevitable.

Starmer knew that every tax rise at the budget would trigger the words “except for Rayner!” from our benches. Pushing up taxes for hardworking families while dodging those very same taxes isn’t a good look for a Housing Secretary.

Double standards like that don’t go unnoticed.

Yet Keir Starmer’s weakness meant that he couldn’t fire her even when her position had clearly become untenable. He waited for her to resign and had to conduct a rushed and panicked reshuffle by phone over the weekend.

But this scandal goes far beyond one individual.

It exposes the truth about Labour: a party that spares itself while punishing everyone else. After waging a relentless war on jobs and businesses with the reckless Jobs Tax and a raft of new burdensome regulations, and on farmers with their Family Farm Tax, Labour is now coming for people’s homes.

This week in Parliament, we forced Labour to reveal their hand.

Conservative MPs brought forward a motion to block damaging property tax rises, but Labour voted against it. By voting against our motion, Labour have made their position clear: they are ready to hit family homes with taxes, even as their former Housing Secretary, in charge at the time, avoided paying them.

That choice spoke volumes. They are getting ready to hit people’s most valuable asset — their home.

Reports that Rachel Reeves is considering scrapping Private Residence Relief show just how far they are prepared to go. Without this protection, families would face an average Capital Gains Tax bill of £14,500 when selling their main home, rising to over £33,000 in London. That would be nothing less than a tax raid on the roof over people’s heads.

This sits alongside wider property tax proposals reportedly being explored by Labour and the Treasury, including new further taxes on family homes.

The Government is also apparently considering further Inheritance Tax grab, by removing the seven-year gift rule which allows parents to help their children out when buying a home or putting down money for a deposit. If this was removed this help would be subject to death duties.

Taken together, these plans for new taxes amount to a war on home ownership that would make life harder for homeowners.

Labour claim to stand up for working people, yet their policies would punish aspiration at every turn. A young couple moving into a bigger home to raise a family, or pensioners downsizing after a lifetime of work, would suddenly face a crippling new tax bill.

It was staggering hypocrisy from Labour. Their former Deputy Prime Minister planning punitive new taxes on family homes while failing to pay the correct tax on her own: One rule for Labour and one for everyone else.

Angela Rayner’s departure may close one chapter, but it does not end the story.

After this whole sorry saga, Labour does not have any moral authority to raise taxes on homes. Doing so in the face of this gargantuan scandal would amount to hypocrisy of the highest order, and one the British public would rightfully not stomach.

The bigger question of what kind of country does Labour want to build also remains.

Labour’s answer is one where success is taxed, aspiration is punished and rules don’t apply to them.

We Conservatives believe families who work hard, save and buy a home should be supported, not penalised. We are the only party committed to living within our means, cutting the deficit, growing the economy and backing the makers.

A family home is not a piggy bank for Labour to raid.

Parents who want to help their children on to the housing ladder should be encouraged, not punished and no household should face an annual levy simply for living in the home they’ve worked hard to build.

Our answer is clear: we will stand up for ordinary families, defend the dream of home ownership and protect people from Labour’s desperate search for more of your money. The next Budget will be deeply damaging because of the endless tax doom loop Labour are set to impose on families and businesses up and down the country.

Only the Conservatives will continue to hold Labour’s feet to the fire and protect hardworking families and homeowners from Labour’s economic mismanagement.

That, you can put in the bank.