Angela Rayner has said she "never" wants to be Labour leader, amid speculations she is seeking to challenge Sir Keir Starmer for leadership of the party.
The deputy prime minister said she has "no desire" to run for the top job and said she could not do better than Mr Starmer at running the country.
The housing secretary ruled out ever running for leadership after she put forward alternative suggestions to raise money and fill the government's financial black hole.
She told Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “I don’t want to be leader of the Labour Party.”
She said: “I have no desire to go for the leadership of the Labour Party. My desire is to deliver for the people of this country who have given me opportunities beyond what I could have dreamed of.”
The news comes after Ms Rayner denied allegations that she leaked a secret memo proposing eight tax increases, affecting savers and higher earners. The memo is seen as a direct challenge to Mr Starmer and Chancellor Rachel Reeves approach to boosting the nations finances.
She said she was “absolutely not” behind the memo and said a leak inquiry had begun.