UK deputy PM quits over tax error, prompting cabinet shake-up
Angela Rayner is the eighth – and most senior – ministerial departure from PM Keir Starmer’s team, and the most damaging yet
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer brought in a new deputy and foreign and interior ministers on Friday in a sweeping reshuffle intended to restore his authority after the resignation of his deputy, Angela Rayner.
Starmer moved foreign minister David Lammy to become deputy prime minister and replaced him with interior minister Yvette Cooper. She was in turn replaced by justice secretary Shabana Mahmood. All are loyal, trusted hands.
After reshaping his Downing Street team last week to bolster his economic advice, a ministerial reshuffle had been expected. Rayner’s departure meant it was much deeper than widely predicted, forcing Starmer to draw a line under more than a week of distracting speculation over her tax affairs.
Starmer could do little to protect Rayner after Britain’s independent adviser ruled that she had breached the ministerial code by failing to pay the correct tax.
“Angela is a ‘big beast’ and hard to replace,” said one Labour lawmaker, adding that the three new appointments were “sound” if not overly exciting.
While Lammy has been given the position of deputy prime minister, he has also been forced to hand over the much sought-after role of foreign secretary and replace Mahmood at justice.