Overview
- Rachel Reeves applied for Southwark’s selective landlord licence after learning her Dulwich home was let without one, with her team saying she relied on a lettings agency that did not flag the requirement.
- The chancellor self-referred to the independent adviser on ministerial standards and notified the Prime Minister and the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards.
- An exchange of letters shows Sir Keir Starmer consulted Sir Laurie Magnus and concluded a further investigation was not necessary given Reeves’s apology and remedial action.
- Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch called for a full inquiry and Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper criticised the episode, keeping political pressure on No 11.
- The four-bedroom property has been rented since September 2024 at about £3,200 a month; Southwark’s rules allow for significant penalties for non-compliance, though no enforcement action has been reported.