‘Keep families out of it’: Johnson dodges question on Sunak wife tax affairs
Chancellor Rishi Sunak has defended his wife, billionaire Akshata Murty, over her tax-reducing non-domiciled status after Labour demanded answers whether he himself benefitted from her status.
Mr Sunak said his wife had done nothing wrong in choosing a financial arrangement that means she is not legally obliged to pay tax in Britain on foreign income.
He has blamed Labour for the “awful” smears against his family, saying: “She hasn’t broken any rules”.
This comes after the party demanded the Chancellor to answer 12 central questions about whether he personally benefited from Ms Murty’s tax arrangement.
Ms Murty, daughter of the Indian businessman Narayana Murthy, is estimated to be worth hundreds of millions of pounds.
Meanwhile, The Telegraph reported that unnamed allies of the Chancellor claimed the Prime Minister’s office was behind the leaks – an allegation No 10 and No 11 strongly denied.
A No 10 spokeswoman told the PA news agency: “It is categorically untrue that No 10 is behind the briefings.”
“The Prime Minister and Chancellor are united.”
