Angela Rayner has told the BBC that she will not pay severance pay.

A lump sum equal to 25% of a minister’s annual salary is paid when a minister leaves office. Servicemen who are over 65 years of age or have been reassigned within three weeks are not eligible.

of 2025/26 accounts, External The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government will record the severance pay for Rayner.

In her first interview since returning to government, Reiner insisted she would return the money.

She told Matt Chorley on BBC Radio 5 Live: “No, I was given severance pay at the time, I worked in the government for a while and then left the government less than a year later.”

“I will give again in the government,” she added.

Rayner said her previous criticism of the Conservatives over severance pay came amid a “revolving door” with ministers returning to government after 40 days.

The Conservatives said earlier this week that Rayner “left in disgrace and took a £17k payout” last year.

The party added, “Now that she has returned her former job, will she return the money? Or is it one rule for the worker, and another for everyone?”

Rayner’s resignation came last September after the prime minister’s ethics adviser, Sir Laurie Magnus, said she had “acted in good faith” but concluded she had breached ministerial rules.

Sir Laurie said she obtained legal advice when she bought the property, but did not seek further professional tax advice as advised.

In May Rayner resolved her tax issues with HMRC. Settlement of £40,000 in unpaid stamp duty following an investigation.

An Ashton Bottom-Line MP has been “cleared” of charges of “deliberate tax avoidance”.

Reiner told Matt Chorley: “The last year I’ve been through has been tough, it’s been tough on my family, but I feel like I let people down and I don’t want to let people down, I want to fight for them.”

Rayner also said she had “unfinished business” in government, including building council houses and supporting local government.

Burnham said he wanted to introduce “the biggest council building program since the war”.

Asked to elaborate on what that would look like, Reiner said she would not give an “exact figure” or a date when she thinks the postwar period is over.

She said: “We want ambition to reach as far as possible and what we have done as a government is to invest more in this, we want to get out the door with £39bn of funding for social and affordable housing support.