It does not take much effort to imagine how Angela Rayner would have responded if a Conservative or Reform MP had behaved as she had. If an MP for another party had been accused of “dodging” stamp duty on the purchase of a flat, denied it for more than a week, and then admitted that they had indeed underpaid tax, she would have been noisy in condemnation.
In her own case, she seems to expect sympathy. She has admitted that she made a mistake, but tried to shift the blame to her lawyers, claiming that she had relied on advice that turned out to be incorrect. This may be a mitigating factor, but ultimately, she must be responsible for her own dealings.
