Helena Vesty reports from Ashton-under-Lyne in the hours after Angela Rayner resigned as deputy Prime Minister, and most people agreed on one thing
18:01, 05 Sep 2025Updated 22:47, 05 Sep 2025
The ‘knives have been out from the start’ for the woman from Stockport who has, willingly or not, become a polemic politician, say Tameside voters(Image: Getty Images)
Whether it’s her accent, hair colour, fashion choices, or her past, Angela Rayner has been a divisive figure in government.
This afternoon, in the MP’s constituency of Ashton-under-Lyne, all those characteristics were up for conversation – but not debate.
The very-recently-former deputy Prime Minister should face the consequences if she has broken the law, Tameside voters said.
But in the hour after news broke that Ms Rayner would no longer hold the second-most senior office in the country, most of the people the Manchester Evening News spoke to agreed on one thing: The ‘knives have been out from the start’.
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Her resignation on Friday (September 5) kickstarted a major cabinet reshuffle after an investigation found she breached the ministerial code over her tax affairs.
The row over her tax escalated in recent days over the Ashton-under-Lyne MP’s purchase of an £800,000 seaside apartment in Hove, East Sussex.
The Labour MP admitted failing to pay £40,000 in stamp duty, prompting an independent investigation into her tax affairs.
Today, a report by ethics watchdog Sir Laurie Magnus said she did breach the ministerial code. However it added Ms Rayner had ‘acted with integrity and with a dedicated and exemplary commitment to public service’.
Neighbouring Manchester Central MP Lucy Powell was the first casualty of reshuffle now following, having been sacked as Leader of the Commons.
Former deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner (right) and former Leader of the House of Commons Lucy Powell (left)(Image: PA)
And in Ashton town centre, in the moments after the news broke, many mourned losing women ‘like us’ at the centre of power.
“She became the poster girl for the working class,” said 40-year-old Kate, sitting on a bench in Ashton town centre with a toddler in a pram.
“Angela, and Lucy Powell, coming from the places they do and holding two of the highest offices – that felt like huge progress. They smashed a glass ceiling.
“With Angela, in particular, she never made the effort to change and why should she? Your accent is a big deal in that job.
“She did work her way up and has shown what you can achieve – but it’s a double edged sword. People attacked her for the way she looked, her family, her voice. If you’re going to criticise her, do it about her politics.
“It just feels like the knives were out from the start. Once this story broke, she was always going to go.”
Mandy Marland, 59(Image: Kenny Brown | Manchester Evening News)
“They were always going to get her on something,” agreed mother-and-daughter-in-law Many and Laura Marland.
“She has been treated unfairly over the years. She’s straight talking but gets a big backlash in comparison to other politicians who have done similar things.
“She was one of the people who is really humble, working class, and relatable. It is unfortunate this happened, it does feel like there’s a real north-south divide she suffered because of.”
But, the 29-year-old and 59-year-old agree, Ms Rayner had to go.
“She does deserve what is happening to her here,” they say. “If it was us, we’d have to go through the same.
“Lots of working class mums have to pay taxes and get it all right.”
“It’s the right decision,” added retired newspaper compositor Peter, 82, as he was shopping in Ashton town centre. “If we’d have fiddled tax we’d be hounded.
“And many of us couldn’t have afforded to get so much advice, we all must obey the law, whether that’s speeding offences or stamp duty.”
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Ms Rayner – who was also the Housing Secretary until today – admitted on Wednesday she did not pay enough stamp duty on the second home.
She said she was advised by a conveyancer and two experts in trust law that the amount of stamp duty she paid on the pad was correct, and that she acted on the advice she was given at the time.
But in a twist, the lawyers Ms Rayner blamed for her underpayment denied having given her tax advice.
In her resignation letter, Rayner told the Prime Minister that she ‘deeply regrets her decision to not seek additional specialist tax advice’ and took ‘full responsibility for this error’ as she resigned as deputy Prime Minister, Housing Secretary and deputy leader of the Labour Party.
Sir Keir Starmer told Rayner ‘you will remain a major figure in our party’ and will ‘continue to fight for the causes you care so passionately about’.
She will continue to serve as Ashton-under-Lyne MP from Labour’s backbenches.
Steve Royales, 62(Image: Kenny Brown | Manchester Evening News)
“She got caught out,” said 62-year-old Steve Royales, who has just moved back to Mossley after 20 years in Bournemouth.
“The company she supposedly used for advice refuted her claims, but they’re probably covering themselves as well.
“If you’re the deputy Prime Minister, you err on the side of caution. She just didn’t have a leg to stand on in such a senior position. She was pushed into a corner, but she put herself there.”
For 40-year-old Laura, from Tameside, the circumstances are ‘unfair’ but she ‘understands’ why Ms Rayner had to go.
“I don’t think she did it deliberately, I do think she was advised, and from her background she always seems like a genuine MP.
“We all make mistakes, don’t read things properly or ignore things sometimes, maybe because we’ve not had appropriate advice, or because we just don’t understand.
“But I do understand the decision. Because of her position, people use her as a role model.”
Laura, 40(Image: Kenny Brown | Manchester Evening News)
Ms Rayner has been that beacon for another Angela – Angela Rhodes. The 67-year-old ‘born and bred in Ashton’, is a blood cancer survivor.
Ms Rhodes says she got in touch with her MP as she faced a five-year battle to get a £4,500 benefits refund from the Department of Work and Pensions.
“Angela [Rayner] fought to get me those benefits back, and that meant so much to me. She wrote me a personal letter from the House of Commons and within a week, the money I’d spent five years trying to get back was in my bank account thanks to her.
“I voted for her and I support her. It feels like she can’t do anything without getting hated for it, other people have got away with similar things and not had to go.
“I think she’s the stronger figure in comparison to Keir, but everybody does have to follow the law.”
Rachel Pearce, 36, also had direct experience of Ms Rayner as her MP. The former deputy Prime Minister helped Rachel when she was struggling to get refurbishments to her affordable housing.
“I really like her, and I think this is unfair,” said Rachel.
“It was nice having someone like us there.”
Angela Rhodes, 67(Image: Kenny Brown | Manchester Evening News)
The cabinet reshuffle, so far, has spelled a drastic lurch away from the north, as Lucy Powell and Angela Rayner are sidelined. And it hasn’t gone unnoticed in Ashton-under-Lyne.
“I know his ‘father was a toolmaker’, but Keir looks and sounds like everyone else in the House of Commons,” said 40-year-old mum Kate, rocking her pram back and forth.
“When the Queen died, everyone we heard from on the news just sounded southern and posh. Then you heard the speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, and it was a complete breath of fresh air – someone with a senior position who still reflected us.
“Angela didn’t fit the narrative. Maybe that counted against her for some people. But will the person who replaces her as deputy Prime Minister just sound like everybody else?”