Britain’s minister for dealing with homelessness, Rushanara Ali, resigned from the government on Thursday after it was revealed that she had considerably hiked the rent at a property she owns.
“It is with a heavy heart that I offer you my resignation as a minister,” said Ali, under-secretary of state for homelessness in the Labour government, in her letter to Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Her resignation came a day after the I-Paper daily reported she had given four tenants four months to leave a London house she owned and then leased it again a few weeks later with the rent more than 700 pounds ($940) higher.
Several associations campaigning against homelessness and opposition lawmakers said the 50-year-old had to resign.
“Further to recent reporting, I wanted to make it clear that at all times I have followed all relevant legal requirements. I believe I took my responsibilities and duties seriously, and the facts demonstrate this,” Ali said in her letter, released by the prime minister’s office.
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“However, it is clear that continuing in my role will be a distraction from the ambitious work of the government,” she added.
In response, Starmer thanked Ali for her “diligent work” at the housing ministry, adding: “Your efforts to put in measures to repeal the Vagrancy Act will have a significant impact.”
