London (AFP) – British Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak has asked the government’s ethical advisor to review whether he has complied with all the rules, after revelations about his family’s finances sparked political controversy.
In a letter to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, revealed late Sunday, Sunak requested that the government adviser in charge of ensuring ministerial rules are respected, Christopher Jett evaluates his declarations of interest since he first became minister in 2018.
The message came after leaks last week revealed that the minister’s wealthy Indian wife took advantage of the tax status of citizens who do not consider the UK their permanent residence, and thus did not pay income tax at a time when it was rising for most Britons.
After initially insisting that his wife, Akshata Murti, whose father co-founded IT giant Infosys, had been the victim of a smear campaign, the couple switched sides on Friday, vowing that she would pay taxes in Britain on her entire global income.
But this did not silence accusations of hypocrisy after he raised taxes on the British in light of the crisis of the high cost of living, while his family made profits in millions of pounds from Infosys that were hidden from his ministry.
Sunak is believed to be the wealthiest member of the British Parliament.
He also faced criticism for the lack of transparency after he admitted that he held a permanent residence (green card) in the United States until last year.
Having residency in the United States allows him to keep it as his residence for a long time and thus pay taxes to the United States, despite being the second most important politician in Britain and the most prominent candidate to succeed Johnson.
There have also been new accusations in recent days, including that he is listed as a beneficiary of offshore trust funds set up in so-called tax havens to help manage his wife’s business affairs.
In his letter to Johnson to request a JIT review, Sunak insisted he acted appropriately but that his “concern” was that the public should trust his responses.
“I am confident that such a review of my advertisements will conclude that all relevant information has been properly publicized,” he said.
But the opposition Labor Party indicated that his situation indicated the possibility of a conflict of interest.
Sunak’s popularity has fallen in recent weeks amid the cost of living crisis and scandals.
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