Subscribe to the View from Westminster email to receive insightful analysis directly in your inbox.
Receive our complimentary email newsletter, “View from Westminster”.
Rishi Sunak earned over £2 million in the past year while British citizens faced difficulties with the high cost of living.
The prime minister was also responsible for paying over 500,000 pounds in UK taxes.
The financial dealings of Mr. Sunak have been closely examined following the disclosure by The Independent that his spouse, Akshata Murty, held a “non-dom” tax status in order to avoid paying UK taxes on income from foreign sources.
She eventually backed away from the contentious position, but it was later revealed that Mr. Sunak had also possessed a US green card and had filed tax returns in the US during his time as chancellor.
In the fiscal year 2022-23, a summary of his tax records reveals that he contributed £508,308 in taxes.
In the previous fiscal year, he earned approximately £1.8m from profits on investments, which is higher than the £1.6m he earned in 2021-22. He also received £293,407 in interest and dividend payments.
All of his earnings from investments and profits from the increase in value of assets came from a US-based investment fund that is registered as a blind trust. He receives benefits from it, but does not oversee its management.
He also received a salary of £139,477, which is much lower than his investment earnings.
Sunak has revealed his tax returns
Instead of a complete tax return, the government released a condensed report of Chancellor Sunak’s UK taxable income, capital gains, and taxes paid for the previous tax year. This information was gathered and provided by accounting firm Evelyn Partners, based on reports from HM Revenue & Customs.
The numbers were disclosed after a challenging week for the prime minister, and there is further potential trouble ahead with two critical by-elections next week.
Mr Sunak was criticised for betting £1,000 on Monday that he would deport asylum seekers to Rwanda and has come under fire in recent days for making a trans jibe while the mother of murdered trans teenager Brianna Ghey was in parliament.
Last year Downing Street revealed the prime minister had raked in more than £4.7m and paid more than £1m in tax, giving him an effective tax rate of 22 per cent. He paid a further $51,648 in US taxes over the same period, as the US charges non-residents for tax due on dividends.
Months after initially promising to release his tax return, the publication was finally made.
Source: independent.co.uk
