Rachel Reeves has admitted she made a “mistake” by failing to obtain a licence when renting out her family home, following reports she broke local housing regulations.
The chancellor did not obtain a selective rental licence when she put her south London home up for rent when she moved into No 11 Downing Street, The Daily Mail reported.
Ms Reeves’s spokesperson said she raised the error with the prime minister’s independent ethics adviser and has admitted it to Sir Keir Starmer.
Southwark Council requires people renting out their properties in certain areas, including where Ms Reeves’s home is, to get one of the licences in advance.
The chancellor is understood to accept she should have got the licence, but relied on the advice of a letting agent, which did not tell her it was necessary.
A spokesperson for Ms Reeves said: “Since becoming chancellor Rachel Reeves has rented out her family home through a lettings agency.
“She had not been made aware of the licencing requirement, but as soon as it was brought to her attention she took immediate action and has applied for the licence.
“This was an inadvertent mistake and in the spirit of transparency she has made the prime minister, the independent adviser on ministerial standards and the parliamentary commissioner for standards aware.”
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has called on Sir Keir to launch a “full investigation” following the revelations.
She wrote on social media: “[Sir Keir] once said ‘lawmakers can’t be lawbreakers’. If, as it appears, the chancellor has broken the law, then he will have to show he has the backbone to act.”
The news that Ms Reeves failed to obtain the licence comes after several high-profile government figures have had to step down as a result of scandals.
Among these were Angela Rayner, the former deputy prime minister and housing secretary, who resigned following a row about her tax affairs.
Lord Mandelson was also sacked as ambassador to Washington after details of his relationship with the dead paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein came to light.
Ms Reeves is faced with questions about the arrangements for renting out her home less than a month before she is due to deliver what is expected to be a difficult Budget.
