Angela Rayner says pocketing £105k delivering speeches doesn't count as second job - despite her own voters earning just £692 a week
Angela Rayner has said that pocketing £105,000 delivering speeches does not count as a second job - despite her own voters earning just £692 a week.
Ms Rayner took home the staggering sum in speaking fees as a backbencher across the course of six months, the register of MPs interests revealed.
The Ashton-under-Lyne MP said: "I was focusing on my constituents during that time, and you'll have seen from the [register of] members' interests, there was, I think around six engagements in 12 months for a couple of hours of speaking engagements. And that's all declared appropriately."
Ms Rayner delivered seven speeches between February and June.
One of the speeches Ms Rayner delivered was for estate agent body PropertyMark in June, earning £20,000 for a two-hour appearance, after stepping down from Government for failing to pay stamp duty on her home.
Meanwhile, her constituents' would take home £692 on average each week, House of Commons figures show, lower than the regional average of £735.
Ms Rayner explained she does not believe the extra income to count as a second job, adding that she was "honoured" to return to the frontbench - despite no longer being able to charge for speeches.
In Opposition, the now-Housing Minister was exceedingly outspoken on the matter, declaring that MPs should be banned from the "racket" of second jobs altogether.
FOLLOW BELOW FOR LIVE UPDATES THROUGHOUT THE DAY…
Britons back confrontation with France to stop small boats crisis
More Britons back standing up to France to curb migrant crossings than deeper cross-Channel cooperation, new polling has revealed.
The bombshell survey, conducted by YouGov, found 41 per cent of Britons believe the UK is more likely to solve the migrant crisis by standing up more forcefully to France.
Meanwhile, 35 per cent suggested pursuing a closer relationship with France to halt small boats.
Labour continues to pay the French authorities hundreds of millions of pounds in an attempt to curb crossings, with the "one-in, one-out" deal supposedly acting as a deterrent to those wanting to make the perilous 21-mile journey.
Reform UK and Tory voters were the most likely to believe it is time to stand up to France.
The figure stood at 79 per cent among those who voted for Reform UK in 2024 and 67 per cent for Conservative supporters.
However, the figure slumped to just 24 per cent among both Labour and Liberal Democrat voters, dropping to 19 per cent among 2024 Green supporters.
Despite Andy Burnham and Sir Keir Starmer pointing out that there has been a 43 per cent drop in small boat crossings compared to this time last year, two-in-five Britons stated they believe there has been an increase in arrivals.
Around one in five said the figure had decreased, with an additional 21 per cent believing the figure remains about the same.
'Britain needs a serious plan!' Kemi Badenoch rails against Labour and Reform on energy policy
Kemi Badenoch has railed against Labour and Reform UK on energy policy as the Tories call for Britain to have a "serious plan" to handle climate change.
Speaking this morning, the Tory leader said: "Britain needs a serious plan to deal with climate change. Seriousness means looking at results, not simply setting targets and congratulating ourselves afterwards.
"Current Net Zero targets have driven up energy costs, weakened our industrial base, and made us more dependent on energy imports, while doing too little to make the country more resilient to floods, droughts, and other consequences of the changing climate.
"This report shows what a common sense approach looks like.
"Unlike Labour, who are wedded to the old failing plans; or Reform, who still don’t believe climate change is happening, the Conservatives will protect our environment, protect our energy security and make energy cheaper.
"Our plan means using our own oil and gas in the North Sea, removing unnecessary costs from energy bills, and backing cheap, reliable, abundant energy for homes and businesses."
'For the economy, for the environment, cheap electricity is the holy grail,' Shadow Energy Secretary tells Labour
The Shadow Energy Secretary has said that cheap electricity is the "holy grail" for the economy and for the environment, chastising Labour's legacy on energy policy.
In a speech this morning, Ms Coutinho said: "Rather than forcing people to do what we want, our job as politicians should be to lift the barriers in their way.
"That’s why we should focus all our attention on making electricity cheap, and then let consumer choice be king.
"That is the only approach that will work in the long term.
"That’s why for the economy or for the environment, cheap electricity is the holy grail."
Claire Coutinho takes aim at Ed Miliband's legacy as Energy Secretary in fiery tirade
Claire Coutinho, the Shadow Energy Secretary, has taken aim at Ed Miliband's legacy as Energy Secretary in a fiery tirade.
Ms Coutinho said: "Ed Miliband’s Clean Power 2030 target is intent on squeezing every last drop of carbon out of our electricity no matter the cost.
"But making electricity expensive puts electrification out of reach for ordinary families, and it’s moving our industry to more polluting countries overseas – forcing us to import back those same goods with higher emissions.
"That is not improving the climate. It is madness – especially when electrification is a far bigger prize than perfectly clean electricity when it comes to reducing emissions."
Tories pledge to scrap Net Zero and focus power on 'making electricity cheap'
The Conservative Party has peldged to scrap Net Zero and, instead, focus energy on "making electricity cheap".
Delivering a speech today, Shadow Energy Secretary Claire Coutinho has declared Britain "should focus all our attention on making electricity cheap, and then let consumer choice be king".
Lib Dem MP handed GB News grilling on call to join EU's migration pact: 'How on Earth is this better?!'
GB News host Alex Armstrong has grilled a Liberal Democrats MP on his party leader's call to join the European Union's new Migration and Asylum Pact.
Appearing on the People's Channel, Max Wilkinson was challenged on how the move "would be any better" than the current agreements the UK has with other countries.
Defending the plan, Mr Wilkinson told GB News that joining the pact would ensure the UK has a "proper returns agreement" with European countries.
He explained: "The EU has just recently introduced the Migration and Asylum Pact, and this is the way that the UK could join a new pact, which would mean that we have proper returns agreements with the European Union."
Andy Burnham accused of 'virtue signalling' after pledging to tackle rough sleeping 'by Christmas': 'Irritating!'
Andy Burnham's pledge to tackle rough sleeping "by Christmas" has been dismantled by Freddy Gray, who argued that the move is "virtue signalling".
Speaking to GB News, the Assistant Editor at The Spectator said although it is a "noble" act by the Prime Minister, it will only be effective "in the short term".
The Prime Minister has committed to offer "everyone a route off the streets this Christmas" as he seeks to build on his pledge to end rough sleeping in Britain.
Mr Burnham is attempting to repeat efforts made during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the Everyone In scheme resulted in thousands of rough sleepers being taken in off the streets.
WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW HERE.
Andy Burnham vows to 'get everyone in for Christmas' as PM launches drive to end rough sleeping
Andy Burnham has pledged to work to "get everyone in for Christmas" as he seeks to build on his vow to end rough sleeping.
The Prime Minister is attempting to repeat efforts made during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the Everyone In scheme resulted in thousands of rough sleepers across England being taken in off the streets.
This week, the Government committed to "offer everyone a route off the streets this Christmas" - although there is no defined period for how long local authorities would be expected to accommodate people.
It is also understood that not every rough sleeper would necessarily take up the offer.
MONEY: UK inflation jumps to highest level since March in fresh challenge for Andy Burnham
UK inflation jumped to 2.9 per cent in July, dealing households a fresh blow after the energy price cap pushed average annual bills up by £221.
The rate climbed from 2.6 per cent in June and moved further above the Bank of England's two per cent target.
Professor Joe Nellis, emeritus professor and head of economic research at MHA, warned that inflation was "moving back in the wrong direction" and was likely to rise further during the second half of 2026.
He explained the increase would be a setback for Prime Minister Andy Burnham, particularly because rising prices disproportionately affect lower-income households.
Liberal Democrats demand UK join EU pact in a bid to curb small boat crossings - while blaming Brexit for deportation difficulties
The Liberal Democrats has demanded the UK join Brussels' Migration and Asylum Pact to hand the UK new powers to return small boat migrants.
Sir Ed Davey claimed the deal would let the UK legally to return migrants to the first EU country they entered and grant Britain access to the EU’s biometric database.
He added that Brexit was to blame for difficulties when it came to carrying out checks on background data and criminal history.
Ed Davey says Nigel Farage should 'hang head in shame'... for deal he did not even strike
Sir Ed Davey has said that Nigel Farage should "hang his head in shame" for the Brexit deal - which the Conservatives made.
The Liberal Democrat leader said: "Farage and the Conservatives should hang their heads in shame for breaking our borders with their bad Brexit deal.
"But instead of apologising to the British public, they are now exploiting the mess they created for their own gain."
However, Mr Farage had no involvement in the deal made by the Tories - and has famously spoken out against the final deal made under Boris Johnson.
Andy Burnham handed almost £350,000 ahead of entering No10
Andy Burnham handed support and hospitality worth nearly £350,000 in the four months before becoming Prime Minister.
The hefty six-figure sum was spent on his political campaign and included £35,000 from his former mayoral adviser Sacha Lord, new filings revealed.
Hospitality worth £13,360 was also declared, including four tickets and accommodation at Glastonbury worth £2,520 and two tickets to Ladies' Day at Aintree received in the year before he became an MP.
A Labour Party spokesman told The Times: "It's right that political campaigns are funded by the generous support of party donors, rather than via the public purse. All declarations have been made in line with parliamentary and Electoral Commission rules."
REVEALED: How should the UK deal with the small boat crisis?
Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter
