Keir Starmer carried out a brutal cabinet reshuffle as he tries to reassert his authority following the resignation of Angela Rayner .

The deputy prime minister quit the government after Starmer’s standards watchdog found she had broken the ministerial code by failing to pay enough stamp duty when she bought a flat earlier this year.

Rayner also stood down as housing secretary and deputy Labour leader, triggering a potentially bitter battle to succeed her.

Starmer took the opportunity to bring forward a long-planned reshuffle and carried out a series of sackings and demotions in a clear admission that his government has been a failure during its first 14 months in office.

Commons leader Lucy Powell and Scottish secretary Ian Murray were the biggest losers as they left the governme

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