Housing Secretary Steve Reed has told GB News that he is meeting Angela Rayner this weekend, following reports that she has been offered a return to the cabinet by Sir Keir Starmer.
Asked if he would welcome her return, Reed said: “Angela is a close friend of mine. I’m actually having dinner with her this weekend, and I’m really looking forward to seeing her. I thought she was fantastic when she had to stand down.
“We’ve got a Labour leader, and he’s staying put. I love Angela Rayner. She’s a very, very close friend. We’ve been friends for years, and I’m looking forward to seeing her this weekend, having a nice dinner and a good catch up.”
Asked about her tax issue, he said: “I think Angela has spoken for herself over that. That’s being reviewed even as we speak and we’ll hear where that goes after as well.
“But Angela is a great asset for the Labour Party, I think she has an ability to communicate that few other politicians have. She’s one of the people that you know is a big character. People know who she is, but she’s also a really good friend, and I’m looking forward to seeing her.”
He downplayed the significance of Labour MPs who failed to back the government during yesterday’s vote on an enquiry over the Mandelson affair: “There’s a lot of ministers who are out on business who weren’t here to vote last night, and there’s a lot of colleagues who were out knocking on doors because of the elections, who weren’t here to vote.
“The people that voted against the government last night were a tiny, tiny handful of the usual suspects. And to be honest, I’m not that bothered about them. I’m much more interested in the vast majority of us who want to get out there.
“We’ve always had rebellious MPs. Every party’s always had rebellious MPs. They’re a tiny, tiny fringe group. The rest of us are focusing on what we can do to build more council homes.”
He added: “Can you remember a time when over tens of thousands of documents were made available so that we could show exactly what had gone on? There’s barely been anything that’s had more scrutiny on it, but what the Tories were doing yesterday was trying to call a vote on something for which they have not been able to demonstrate a shred of evidence.
“If they were serious, they would have waited until those further documents came out to see if there was anything in there. But no, they pulled this stunt ahead of the local elections because it was a party political trap. That’s all.
“They’re not interested in finding the truth. They’re interested in pulling stunts. We are being transparent. That’s why the documents are being released. That’s why the Foreign Affairs Select Committee is conducting those hearings.
“But voters want to know what we’re doing to make their lives better, and I know that because I’ve knocked on hundreds of doors over recent weeks in the run up to the election. I’m afraid the Mandelson issue hasn’t come up once.
“People ask me what you’re doing about housing, what you’re doing about the potholes, what you’re doing about the economy, and that is what they expect us to talk to them about.”