The news about Rayner’s tax affairs was first published by the Guardian newspaper and ITV News on Thursday morning.
Speaking to the Guardian about the tax saga that led to her resignation, Rayner said voters had been “left with the impression that I somehow tried to avoid – or worse had been reckless or careless – in my actions”.
“Whereas now hopefully people can see that actually it’s a really complex area of law,” she said.
In her interview with ITV News, external journalist Paul Brand, Rayner said she welcomed the HMRC’s conclusion that “there wasn’t any wrongdoing and that I didn’t try to avoid paying tax, and I wasn’t careless in the way I conducted myself”.
The BBC has seen an email from the tax authority to Rayner’s lawyers which verifies that HMRC regards the matter as closed.
HMRC also spells out in the email that Rayner will not face a penalty charge.
A penalty is incurred if a tax error is “careless” or “deliberate”.
At the time of her resignation, the prime minister’s ethics adviser said Rayner “acted with integrity” but had breached the ministerial code. He said she did get legal advice when buying the property, but failed to seek further expert tax advice as recommended.
On Thursday morning, the former deputy prime minister said: “I set out to pay the correct amount of tax. I took reasonable care and acted in good faith, based on the expert advice I received, and HMRC has accepted this.”
She added: “I wanted to ensure that I paid every penny that I owed, and have done so. I am relieved that my family can now move on – and that I can get on with my job.”
