Just days ago, Angela Rayner was one of the most powerful women in Britain. The deputy prime minister, widely seen as a future contender for the top job, had built her career on her working-class roots and ability to connect with voters.
Now, the 45-year-old has stepped down as deputy prime minister, housing secretary, and deputy leader of the Labour Party after admitting she failed to pay enough tax on the purchase of a new home. The resignation ends her meteoric rise at the heart of Labour’s government and sends her back to the backbenches.
Her story has always stood out in British politics. A self-described “proper working-class” woman, Rayner grew up in poverty in Stockport, Greater Manchester. She left school without qualifications at 16, became a mother at the same age, and worked as a care worker before climbing the ranks of the trade union Unison. By 2015, she had made history as the first female MP for Ashton-under-Lyne, and less than a decade later, she was deputy prime minister.
A tough start
Born Angela Bowen in 1980, she grew up on one of Stockport’s poorest estates. Her mother struggled with bipolar disorder and depression, and Rayner has described sleeping at the foot of her mum’s bed at age 10 to make sure she didn’t harm herself. Money was so tight that the family would visit her grandmother’s flat just to share a weekly bath.
After leaving school, she was told she would “never amount to anything.” But Rayner defied those predictions. She earned a qualification in social care, worked as a care worker, and became a full-time union official in her 20s. Outspoken and tough, she quickly rose to one of Unison’s top elected posts in northwest England.
In 2010, she married fellow union official Mark Rayner. The couple, who divorced in 2023, had two sons together. One was born prematurely and is registered blind with special educational needs. Rayner already had a son from her teenage years, and at 37 she became a grandmother, earning the nickname “Grangela.”
The Westminster climb
Rayner entered parliament in 2015, saying she stood for the Ashton-under-Lyne seat just to prove “people like me can’t get elected”—only to win. She rose quickly under Jeremy Corbyn, holding roles in women and equalities and later education.
After Corbyn stepped down in 2020, Rayner ran for deputy leader instead of the top job, winning comfortably. Her plain-speaking style and working-class credentials made her a natural political bridge, often compared to John Prescott under Tony Blair.
She became a key player in Keir Starmer’s Labour Party, though the two sometimes clashed. When Labour stumbled in 2021 local elections, Starmer tried to move her aside, but Rayner fought back and secured even more senior roles in the shadow cabinet.
By the time Labour swept to victory in 2024, she was deputy prime minister and leading Labour’s flagship pledge to build 1.5 million homes by 2030.
Outspoken and controversial
Rayner’s blunt style made her a star among supporters but also brought controversy. She once called senior Conservatives “a bunch of scum,” later apologising. She was accused in 2021 of deliberately distracting Boris Johnson in parliament, which she slammed as sexist and misogynistic.
Her critics also dug into her personal life. In 2024, she was investigated over tax payments on the sale of her council house. Police found no offence, but the scrutiny didn’t stop. The press branded her “Teflon Ang” for her ability to brush off scandals.
This time, though, she couldn’t. As housing secretary, the revelation that she hadn’t paid enough tax on her own home was too damaging. Starmer’s ethics adviser, Sir Laurie Magnus, ruled she had broken the ministerial code. While praising her integrity, he said she hadn’t met the “highest possible standards.”
Rayner admitted she regretted not getting specialist tax advice when buying a flat in Hove, East Sussex. Starmer, in a handwritten note, praised her as “the living embodiment of social mobility.”
The end of the road?
Her departure leaves a hole in Starmer’s government just as he tries to reset after a rocky first year. It also cuts short the career of one of Labour’s brightest stars.
For a woman who went from teenage mum on a Stockport estate to deputy prime minister, Angela Rayner’s rise was extraordinary. Her fall has been just as dramatic.
