Angela Rayner, Labour’s Deputy Prime Minister, is making headlines again—but this time it’s not about her future ambitions or speeches on the campaign trail.
Instead, she’s reportedly in a growing power struggle behind closed doors, clashing with Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Chancellor Rachel Reeves over looming cuts to her department’s budget.
As the Labour leadership prepares for a major spending review next month, things are heating up—and Rayner isn’t staying quiet.
A Budget Battle Brewing
According to insiders, Rayner has been fiercely pushing back against plans to reduce housing spending.
She’s been vocal in meetings, demanding more support to meet her party’s promise to build 1.5 million new homes by 2029.
But sources say her protests have so far fallen on deaf ears.
The Housing Secretary is expected to be one of the biggest losers in next month’s comprehensive spending review, a move that’s left her deeply frustrated.
“She feels like the rug is being pulled out from under her,” one Labour insider told the Mail.
“She’s been given a nearly impossible housing target—and now they want to shrink her budget too?”
Leadership Rumors: Real or Just the Usual Westminster Whispers?
All this drama is unfolding just as whispers grow louder about Rayner potentially eyeing the top job.
A recent leak of a private memo she sent to the Chancellor—urging tax hikes for high earners and savers instead of spending cuts—has only added fuel to the speculation.
Some believe she’s positioning herself as the voice of Labour’s left, in contrast to Starmer’s more centrist approach.
And it’s not helping party unity. “It’s not the best look for her,” said one party source. “But given how tough her job has become, it’s understandable.”
‘Secret’ Focus Groups and a Battle for Public Perception
Adding another twist to the story, reports have surfaced that Rayner’s team has been quietly running focus groups to test how she’d perform in a future leadership contest.
The takeaway? She needs to be seen as a more serious political figure if she’s going to make a move.
Whether or not these focus groups were “unauthorized,” as some claim, they’ve only heightened suspicions that Rayner might be preparing for a bigger role in Labour’s future—perhaps sooner than some expected.
The Spending Review Crunch
Back to the numbers—Rayner is still locked in tense negotiations with the Treasury.
While key areas like health and defence are getting protected status in the review, her housing department is on the chopping block.
Government sources say it’s going to be a brutal process for everyone involved.
“Every department without protected budgets is going to have to fight hard,” one official warned.
Rayner, for her part, has also been urging more investment in social housing, but Reeves appears reluctant to loosen the purse strings.
A Leaked Memo and a Bold Alternative
The now-infamous memo Rayner sent to the Treasury revealed she had bold ideas to raise revenue by targeting the wealthy.
She even proposed rolling back a Tory-era change to child benefits that extended support to middle-income families.
By reversing those changes, the government could save around £600 million annually, Rayner argued.
She also suggested a package of tax adjustments aimed at raising £3.5 billion—all to avoid cuts that would hurt the most vulnerable.
While popular among left-leaning Labour members, her proposals were seen as controversial by others in the party.
A Growing Divide Within Labour
The memo leak couldn’t have come at a more politically sensitive time.
With as many as 170 Labour MPs expressing unease about upcoming welfare reforms, tensions inside the party are bubbling to the surface.
Rayner’s allies insist she’s simply doing her job—fighting for her department and for Labour’s promises to voters. “It’s normal for ministers to push for their funding during the review period,” one close source said.
But with the June 11 spending review deadline fast approaching, and eyes on Rayner’s every move, it’s clear that Labour’s internal battles are far from over.