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Angela Rayner in fresh housing hypocrisy storm over lobbying firm donation
Labour Party deputy leader is fighting for her political life over claims she broke the law with her old council house
ANGELA Rayner has been hit by a fresh housing ‘hypocrisy’ storm - piling yet more pressure on the embattled Labour Party deputy.
Parliamentary documents show she accepted £6,000 from a PR firm that lobbies for housing developers - while she blasted firms for failing to build enough homes.
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Tory MPs accused her of “unashamed hypocrisy” after the shocking revelation surfaced.
It comes as Ms Rayner is already battling for her political life over claims she broke the law over her ex council house.
Cops are probing claims she failed to pay enough tax when she sold her Stockport home, and was registered at the wrong address. She strongly denies the claims
Tory MP Craig Tracey, Tory deputy chairman, said: "This is exactly the kind of unashamed hypocrisy we've come to expect from Labour.
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"Rayner has made a song and dance about ethics, but here she is gallivanting around the country courtesy of a firm that lobbies for the very thing she's attacking.
"She needs to come clean on this arrangement."
Tory MP Brendan Clarke-Smith said: “If you are going to attack housing developers for not building enough affordable housing then fine, but don’t then take money from their lobbyists.
“It’s yet another example of Labour hypocrisy."
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Ms Rayner took a £6,000 donation from Pentland Communications.
The money helped pay for her battle bus which she took on her ‘Rayner on the Road’ tour of Britain last summer.
The Sun's Harry Cole questions Keir Starmer and Wes Streeting about Angela Rayner's tax affairs
Pentland represents some of Britain’s biggest housing developers, including Taylor Wimpey and Barratt Developments.
Ms Rayner - who is shadow housing secretary as well as Labour party deputy - has attacked greedy developers for failing to build enough affordable housing.
During her big Labour party conference speech last October, she vowed to strengthen rules “to prevent developers wriggling out of their responsibilities and we will speed up the building of new social and affordable housing”.
Barrie Cunning, who runs Pentland Communications, posted pictures of himself on the Rayner on the battlebus.
Posting on Linkedin, he said: “Was an honour to have been part of Angela Rayner’s “Rayner on the road “ tour this week”
A Labour spokesman said: “Labour is on the side of working people who are facing a desperate housing crisis under the Tories.
"Major house builders must play their part in getting the 1.5 million homes Britain needs built and Angela Rayner will hold them to their obligations to deliver affordable housing.”
Meanwhile, MPs on the powerful Treasury Select Committee plan to grill the boss of HMRC on a Rayner-like tax scenario.
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They will ask Chief Executive Jim Harra where people can find advice on tax they may owe on council houses bought under right to buy.
Treasury Committee chair Harriett Baldwin said: “The committee is very concerned about how taxpayers who are law abiding can get access to the help and guidance they need by speaking to someone to clarify the rules so they can get their taxes right.”
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