Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has responded to the Tories' inquiries about Angela Rayner's taxes, saying they are "chasing a smear". The Deputy
Labour Leader and Ashton-under-Lyne MP has faced questions on whether she paid the correct amount of tax when selling her former council house in 2015. Queries were triggered by uncertainty over her assertions that it was her primary residence. Ms Rayner has maintained that she he has "done absolutely nothing wrong", adding that she consulted legal advice during the sale to ensure no rules were breached. She confirmed she was willing to present this legal advice to the
police or HMRC if necessary, but stated she would not publicly disclose her "personal tax advice". READ MORE: Former Greater Manchester Police officer accused of stealing police uniform Over the weekend, Richard Holden, Chairman of the Conservative Party , discussed a letter he sent to Sir Keir including testimonies from residents who claim Angela Rayner wasn't resident at the address registered on the electoral roll. In his letter, Mr Holden wrote: "You have pledged to uphold standards in public life but the failure by you and your deputy to answer the simplest questions about this matter makes a mockery of these claims." He went further adding: "Given the clear public interest in this case, your unwillingness to investigate this fully so far, or even bother to look at the legal advice Ms Rayner claims to have received, is a damning indictment of your leadership. Surely you recognise this matter is highly corrosive to your own reputation, not just that of your deputy." Sir Keir defended Angela Rayner (Image: PA Wire/PA Images) Defending Ms Rayner, Sir Keir pointed out that people's focus should be on "problems caused by this government." He stated: "Angela Rayner has been asked no end of questions about this. She's answered them all. She said she's very happy to answer any further questions from the police or from any of the authorities. "I don't need to see the legal advice. My team has seen it. But I will say this, that on the day that the A&E figures, people are waiting more than 24 hours in A&E, we now know that they are 10 times as high as they were five years ago. "The idea that the Tories want to be focusing on what Angela Rayner, how much time she spent with her ex-husband 10 years ago, I can tell you here at this hospital, nobody but nobody is interested in that. They're very, very interested in what are you going to do about the A&E problem caused by this government." Adding on his view regarding viewing Ms Rayner's legal advisements personally, Sir Keir noted it was "not appropriate". He proceeded to add: "But I do know this, that if you're waiting more than 24 hours for A&E, you're much more interested in why the government is not absolutely laser focused on that, which is what they should be, than chasing this smear against Angela Rayner and how much time she spent with her husband over 10 years ago." Conservative Party's Deputy Chairman James Daly had earlier encouraged Sir Keir to "show some leadership and open a full, transparent and independent investigation" into Ms Rayner's tax status.