Starmer rules out probe after Reeves licence lapse | JQJO

Rachel Reeves apologised for renting out her family home without a selective licence and has now applied for one. In late-night letters, Keir Starmer said, after consulting ethics adviser Sir Laurie Magnus, that no further investigation is needed, citing an inadvertent breach and the ministerial code’s allowance for apology. Conservatives demanded Reeves be sacked, alleging “one rule for the chancellor,” though Kemi Badenoch said she should go only if the law was broken. Legal consequences remain unclear; an FOI found 245 councils issued £2.5m in fines in 2023–24. The episode raises fresh questions about her judgment.