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The police probe into Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner is looking at multiple allegations and is not limited to potential electoral law offences.
Greater Manchester Police reportedly has a team of at least a dozen officers investigating where Ms Rayner lived in 2010s and the sale of her former council house in Stockport.
The force previously announced it was investigating Ms Rayner over the sale of the property and whether she broke electoral law by giving false information of her address.
The probe will also look into tax matters relating to the sale.
“It’s very well resourced, it’s not a single issue,” a source told The Times. “There is a volume of material and a clear public interest to fully investigate.”
The source also emphasised it was possible no offences would be identified.
Ms Rayner has insisted she has done nothing wrong and vowed toresign if found to have committed any offences.
She said the story was a smear being pushed by the Conservative Party to hurt her and Labour ahead of the local elections on 2 May.
Elsewhere, the government’s plan to send migrants to Rwanda is expected to become law by the end of the week.
Parliamentary ‘ping-poing’ will continue on Wednesday as the bill is sent back to the Commons after the House of Lords made a number of changes to it.
Watch: Nigel Farage says ‘big political decision’ to be announced when quizzed on joining Conservative Party
Nigel Farage said he is going to make a big political decision within the “next few weeks” after he was quizzed on whether he would join the Conservative Party.
Mr Farage was quizzed on his political future after Liz Truss said she would like to see him “join the party”.
He said: “In terms of what i may or may not do, I simply haven’t decided, but I notice Reform is getting stronger.
“I’m going to make a big decision about this within the next few weeks.”
Matt Mathers17 April 2024 10:44
Rees-Mogg criticises ‘absurd’ smoking ban
Jacob Rees-Mogg has criticised the government’s “absurd” smoking ban, saying it will do nothing to help his party’s prospects at the general election.
The former business secretary was one of 165 Tory MPs who either abstained or voted against the ban last night in the House of Commons.
“The Conservative Party has an electoral mountain to climb. If we want to overturn the Labour lead in the opinion polls, we need to start pursuing conservative policies and show a sense of proportion,” he told GB News.
“How many voters will switch back to the Tories because of this complex and impractical ban, aggressively pushed by the people who gave us endless lockdowns?”
Matt Mathers17 April 2024 10:40
Rwanda stand-off continues as peers inflict fresh defeats on asylum policy
The parliamentary “ping-pong” over prime minister Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda scheme will continue on Wednesday after peers gave the controversial policy a fresh beating.
Despite MPs overturning previous changes by the House of Lords, the unelected chamber on Tuesday again pressed demands for revisions to the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill, prolonging the parliamentary wrangling.
However, the bill is still expected to become law by the end of the week – potentially being cleared in the Commons tonight
Matt Mathers17 April 2024 10:36
In full: Manchester police chief suggests multiple allegations made against Rayner
Police investigating Angela Rayner have suggested there are multiple allegations which may extend beyond her housing arrangements.
Matt Mathers17 April 2024 10:31
