Oct. 30 (UPI) — British chancellor Rachel Reeves received the backing of Prime Minister Keir Starmer after apologizing for failing to purchase a $1,250 “selective” permit from the local authority to let her family home in South London.
Reeves, or her realtor, face an unlimited fine should Southwark Council opt to prosecute the breach of rules requiring landlords comply with housing codes but Starmer rejected opposition parties’ demands for an investigation Wednesday, saying she had not broken the ministerial code.
Reeves’ spokesperson said the letting agency handling the property advised her a permit was not necessary.
Reeves earlier wrote Starmer alerting him about the issue and offering her “sincere” apologies for what she said was an unintended oversight and assuring him she had now applied for the license.
In a reply to Reeves, Starmer said that he had come to his decision after consulting with his Independent Adviser on Ministerial Standards.
“He has advised me that in relation to your inadvertent failure to secure the appropriate licence for your rental property — and in light of your prompt action to rectify the position, including your apology — further investigation is not necessary,” Starmer wrote.
“The Ministerial Code makes clear that in certain circumstances, an apology is a sufficient resolution.”
As spokesman for the opposition Conservative Party on Thursday demanded Starmer fire Reeves.
However, party leader Kemi Badenoch adopted a more measured stance but said Reeves needed to explain herself and that Starmer shouldn’t make exceptions for “lawbreakers.”
“I think that the more I hear about the story, the more questions there are to answer. This is a 2004 statute that was brought in by Labour. She has tweeted about how it should be extended, and yet she wasn’t following it herself,” Badenoch told reporters at a rally in South London.
“And it’s all very well blaming someone else, the lettings agent didn’t do this or that, she is the chancellor. She needs to be on top of her paperwork. She was aware of this legislation. I think there should be an investigation.
“The bottom line is that Keir Starmer said again and again, that lawbreakers shouldn’t be lawmakers. So if she’s broken the law, then he should apply his own rules to her.”
Daisy Cooper, the Liberal Democrats deputy leader, said Reeves risked seriously undermining the government’s credibility to deal with the serious problems facing the country.
“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.
In September, Starmer’s deputy, Angela Rayner, was forced to resign over underpaying taxes on the sale of a $1.1 million apartment by approximately $53,700.
Then-minister for homelessness Rushanara Ali quit the government in August after it was revealed she evicted her tenants from a property in East London on grounds she wanted to sell only to re-list it for rent at more than $5,200 a month.
Reeves put the family home on the market for $4,612 a month after becoming chancellor in July 2024 after Labour came to power after winning a general election. The job comes with a residence in Downing Street, at no. 11, next to the prime minister’s.
