44 Facts About Angela Rayner

Angela Rayner is a British politician who has served as Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government since July 2024.

Angela Rayner has been Deputy Leader of the Labour Party since 2020 and Labour and Co-operative Member of Parliament for Ashton-under-Lyne since 2015.

Angela Rayner left school aged 16 whilst pregnant and without any qualifications.

Angela Rayner later trained in social care at Stockport College and worked for the local council as a care worker.

Angela Rayner eventually became a trade union representative within UNISON, during which time she joined the Labour Party.

From 2016 until 2020 Angela Rayner held several Shadow Cabinet positions under Jeremy Corbyn.

Angela Rayner successfully stood for the deputy leadership of the Labour Party in 2020, and held further Shadow Cabinet positions under Keir Starmer.

Angela Rayner Bowen was born on 28 March 1980 in Stockport, Greater Manchester.

Angela Rayner grew up in poverty on a council estate with her older brother and younger sister and says she could have been taken into care.

Angela Rayner has spoken about how the Sure Start centres of the New Labour governments of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown assisted her as a young mother with little support.

Angela Rayner worked for Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council as a care worker for a number of years.

Angela Rayner was later elected as convenor of UNISON North West, becoming the union's most senior official in the region, during which time she joined the Labour Party.

In September 2014 Angela Rayner was selected as the Labour Party's prospective parliamentary candidate for Ashton-under-Lyne.

Angela Rayner made her maiden speech in the House of Commons on 2 June 2015.

Angela Rayner nominated Andy Burnham in the 2015 Labour leadership election, but was one of just 18 MPs to back the incumbent Jeremy Corbyn against Owen Smith in the 2016 leadership election.

Angela Rayner supported the notion of a 'National Education Service' to be modelled along similar lines to the National Health Service, promoting an increase in funding for early years education.

Angela Rayner was considered by some as a possible future Labour leader.

Angela Rayner did not stand for the Labour leadership in the 2020 leadership election, and supported Rebecca Long-Bailey, who came second to Keir Starmer.

However, Angela Rayner stood for the deputy leadership the 2020 deputy leadership election.

The results were announced on 4 April 2020, with Angela Rayner announced as the winner and becoming deputy leader, succeeding Tom Watson.

Angela Rayner deputised opposite Dominic Raab during Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak's premierships, and deputised opposite Oliver Dowden during the Sunak premiership.

Angela Rayner was appointed Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Shadow Secretary of State for the Future of Work.

Angela Rayner has strongly criticised Corbyn, as he "did not command the respect of the party", and critiqued his lack of "discipline" when it came to dealing with antisemitism in the party.

Angela Rayner has described herself as "quite hardline" on law and order issues, having suffered from antisocial behaviour when she was young.

Angela Rayner asked Hansard transcribers not to correct her speeches, preferring "to talk naturally" in the commons "because it's who I am".

In 2019 Angela Rayner declared her support for the WASPI campaign for compensation for women affected by government pension age changes.

In October 2020 Angela Rayner called then Conservative MP Chris Clarkson "scum" as he was giving a speech in Parliament, and was rebuked by the Parliament's deputy speaker for doing so.

Angela Rayner later apologised for her comments in light of the murder of Conservative MP David Amess the following month.

Angela Rayner has said that she "didn't have a particularly strong view either way" on Brexit.

Angela Rayner campaigned for Britain Stronger in Europe and voted to remain in the European Union during the 2016 Brexit referendum.

Angela Rayner opposed Labour's policy for a second referendum adopted under Corbyn and argued that it would "undermine democracy".

In December 2024 Angela Rayner was included in the BBC 100 Women 2024, a list of "100 inspiring and influential women from around the world for 2024".

Between 1995 and 2005 Angela Rayner was in a relationship with Neil Batty.

Angela Rayner says that the care her son Charlie received after his premature birth demonstrated the importance of the NHS to her.

In October 2021 Angela Rayner reported receiving a number of death threats and abusive messages.

Angela Rayner cancelled a number of meetings with her constituents due to fears for her own safety.

On 24 April 2022 Angela Rayner was the subject of a report in The Mail on Sunday, by Glen Owen, in which it was alleged that she had tried to distract Boris Johnson in the Commons by crossing and uncrossing her legs in a similar manner to Sharon Stone in a scene from the 1992 film Basic Instinct.

In May 2022 Angela Rayner said she would resign as Deputy Leader of the Labour Party if she received a fixed penalty notice for breaching COVID-19 regulations while campaigning during the run-up to the Hartlepool by-election and local elections the previous year.

In March 2024 a former Conservative Party deputy chairman, Michael Ashcroft, alleged that Angela Rayner had misled tax officials in the sale of her council house in 2015.

Angela Rayner said that she had done nothing wrong, and declined to publish her tax records or tax advice.

Angela Rayner subsequently said that she would "do the right thing and step down" if she were found to have broken the law.

Angela Rayner was cleared by HM Revenue and Customs, which concluded that she did not owe any capital gains tax and thus no action would be taken.

Angela Rayner welcomed the announcement, and said the Conservatives had used "desperate tactics" against her.

Angela Rayner later announced she would no longer accept clothes from donors.