Angela Rayner has mocked the Conservative MP who contacted police amid a row over historic living arrangements.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) announced it was dropping the investigation into the Labour deputy leader after the MP for Bury North James Daly brought claims against her.
Sharing a picture of the front page of the Mirror on social media – which had led on the latest development – Rayner appeared to taunt Daly, tagging him in the post along with the simple message “Morning” alongside a sunshine icon.
The Ashton-under-Lyne MP had faced claims she may have broken electoral law and dodged capital gains tax and council tax because of the way she and her then husband used separate homes.
GMP and Stockport Council both confirmed they would take no further action against the MP.
Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting rules out giving a full pay rise to junior doctors ‘on day one’
Streeting told ITV’s Good Morning Britain: “I want to be really upfront with junior doctors this side of the election – the 35 per cent pay claim they’ve put in, I’m just not going to be able to afford that on day one of a Labour government.
“We’re going to have to work together and negotiate on pay and recognise, as was the case with the last Labour government who inherited a similar mess, getting to fair pay is a journey not an event, and I am willing to negotiate on pay and those wider conditions that junior doctors are working.”
SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn says Diane Abbott confusion is ‘pretty sorry reflection’ of Labour
SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn
PA
SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn hailed Diane Abbott as a “phenomenal individual” as he branded the situation a “pretty sorry state of affairs” for Labour.
The SNP politician said Sir Keir Starmer’s party had welcomed former Conservative MP Natalie Elphicke, whom he described as a “right-wing populist”, with “open arms” contrasting that with its treatment of Ms Abbott.
Flynn told Sky News: “I think this is a pretty sorry reflection of the Labour Party and where it stands, what its values are and what its principles are at the moment.”
He said: “Diane Abbott gets her membership back at the very last minute but isn’t allowed to stand. I’d just like to thank Diane for everything she has done, as a trailblazer for women in Parliament, but also as the first black female in Parliament. She’s a phenomenal individual and her legacy is going to be long lasting.”
Caroline Lucas MP slams Sir Keir Starmer for saying he would not reverse two-child benefit cap
Green Party MP Caroline Lucas
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The departing Green MP for Brighton Pavilion told an audience at the Hay Festival: “Why is a debate about a wealth tax such a taboo in this country? Why is it fine to tax income but not to tax assets?
“We have the Labour party running scared of having even any debate about some kind of tax on the ultra-wealthy.
“This would be just the one percent most wealthy people – most people would not be affected by it. So why can’t we even have the debate about it? Even in Switzerland they have some kind of wealth tax and when I last checked it hadn’t become some kind of hotbed of communist revolt.”
Liberal Democrats set to launch election campaign in Wales today
The Liberal Democrats will today launch their general election campaign in Wales with a promise to reverse the Conservatives’ “legacy of failure” and champion British farming.
Leader Ed Davey will set out a rescue plan for farmers, including £1 billion in extra funding for the agriculture budget, re-negotiating botched overseas trade deals and addressing worker shortages blighting the sector.
Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting said a fifth Conservative term would be ‘catastrophic’ for the NHS
Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting
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Streeting told Times Radio: “What really matters is the waiting time, because that’s the clinically driven target, because if you’ve got a condition like cancer we know that time matters, and I know that, and from my own experience as a cancer survivor.
“But also if you’re waiting for things like orthopaedics, hip and knee replacements, if you’re waiting more than 18 weeks that has a serious impact on your quality of life.
“Also it has an impact often in terms of your working life and, as Rachel Reeves has argued, the health of the nation and the health of the economy are inextricably linked, so that’s why this is such a big priority for Labour.
“We’ve got the track record. More importantly, we have the plan. I urge people not to give the matches back to the arsonists by electing the Conservatives for an unprecedented fifth term because the NHS is catastrophic.”
Greater Manchester Police’s statement regarding Angela Rayner in full
A spokesperson said: “Following allegations about Angela Rayner MP, Greater Manchester Police has completed a thorough, carefully considered and proportionate investigation. We have concluded that no further police action will be taken.
“The investigation originated from complaints made by Mr James Daly MP directly to GMP. Subsequent further contact with GMP by members of the public, and claims made by individuals featured in media reporting, indicated a strong public interest in the need for allegations to be investigated.
“Matters involving council tax and personal tax do not fall into the jurisdiction of policing. GMP has liaised with Stockport Council and information about our investigation has been shared with them. Details of our investigation have also been shared with His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC).”
Sunak arrives in Cornwall to resume campaign in the south west
Sunak arrives in Cornwall today
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Rishi Sunak has arrived in Cornwall in the latest leg of his General Election campaign tour.
The Prime Minister took the overnight sleeper train from London Paddington on Tuesday to embark on a day of campaigning in the south west of England.
Labour source questions Diane Abbott’s claim she has been barred from standing for Labour
A Labour source has questioned Diane Abbott’s claim to have been banned from standing for the party, suggesting it might be an attempt to “bounce” party leaders into a deal.
The source said: “(I’m) not quite sure that’s right, the NEC is due to finalise candidate endorsements on Tuesday.
“I think this may be an attempt to bounce Loto (Leader of the Opposition’s Office) into some sort of deal.”
Education minister Damian Hinds said volunteering activities ‘contribute to developing character’
Damian Hinds MP
PA
The MP for East Hampshire told Times Radio: “The modern form of national service is about giving up 25 days across a year, one weekend a month, doing things which would be a huge benefit to our society, but also actually to the individual.
“All of these things contribute to developing character. They give you transferable skills in life. They bring camaraderie, you meet new people, people you weren’t at school with, from different backgrounds.
“And all of this is good, as I say. It’s good for our society. It’s also good for the individual.”
First TV election debate set for June 4
The Telegraph reports the first head-to-head debate between Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer will take place on June 4, exactly one month before the General Election.
The first debate is set to be held with both major political party leaders by ITV.
Diane Abbott says she has been barred from standing as a Labour candidate
Diane Abbott
PA
Diane Abbott has confirmed she has been barred from standing for Labour, despite having the whip restored last night.
The former shadow Home Secretary and MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington confirmed on BBC’s Today programme she has been blocked by the party from standing at the general election.
She said: “Although the whip has been restored, I am banned from standing as a Labour candidate.”
Education minister Damien Hinds said it is ‘not up to Government ministers’ to determine which degrees would be scrapped.
Hinds told Times Radio: “We’re not directing somebody to scrap one in eight.
“It’s not about taking somebody off a course they’re already on and it’s absolutely not about saying to any individual ‘you can’t go to university’.
“It’s about saying, if there’s a course which isn’t doing what it should do, isn’t providing that opportunity for those young people, then it shouldn’t be able to recruit more people onto that course.”
Sunak pledges to scrap “rip off degrees”
The Conservatives have pledged to scrap some university degrees to help fund around 100,000 apprenticeships.
Some of the “worst performing” degrees that have high drop out rates and “poor” job prospects would be ditched.
It comes after Labour has slammed the government over a lack of new apprenticeships. Labour said they would prioritise “gearing” apprenticeships towards young people.
Meanwhile the Liberal Democrats accused the government of treating apprentices like “second-class workers”.
Sir Keir Starmer says he ‘never doubted’ Angela Rayner
Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer and deputy leader Angela Rayner
PA
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said Rayner “has been vindicated”.
“I never doubted that Angela hadn’t done anything wrong and now she’s been cleared by the police,” he told reporters on the General Election campaign trail.
A Labour Party spokesman said: “Angela has always been clear that she was not liable for capital gains tax on the sale of the home she owned before she was an MP, that she was properly registered to vote, and paid the appropriate council tax.
“She took expert tax and legal advice which confirms this. This draws a line under the matter.”