UK's Rishi Sunak Paid £1 Million in Taxes from 2019 to Present, Tax Records Reveal
Rishi Sunak, the UK's Prime Minister, just dished out over a million pounds in taxes over the last three years, a peek at his financial activities shows. The tax man got his cut from Sunak's income of over £4.7 million, primarily from earnings and an American investment fund.
Back in 2014, during his failed bid to become Tory leader, Sunak promised to publish a tax return. He faced calls for financial transparency after it was revealed that his partner, Akshata Murty, enjoyed non-dom status, which means she didn't pay UK tax on her foreign income.
The tax details surfaced as MPs grilled former Prime Minister Boris Johnson over Partygate. Keep in mind, Sunak is believed to be one of the wealthiest MPs in Parliament, a fact opposition parties often use as political ammunition.
Sunak and his family are suspected to own numerous properties, including a Quality II-listed manor house in his North Yorkshire constituency. In the last financial year alone, 2021-2022, the PM raked in over £1.9 million in revenue and capital gains.
Here's the lowdown on how much tax Sunak paid for the three years:
- In 2019/20, he paid £227,350 on total earnings of £1,018,389.
- In 2020/21, the figure was £393,217 on total earnings of £1,777,581.
- In 2021/22, he paid £432,493 on total earnings of £1,970,992.
Earlier this month, while jet-setting to Paris for talks with French President Emmanuel Macron, Sunak announced he had been "keen" to release his tax return faster.
Labour said it was about time Sunak shared his income tax return "after much delay." The party's deputy leader Angela Rayner claimed, "These returns reveal a tax system designed by successive Tory governments in which the prime minister pays a much lower tax rate than working people facing the highest tax burden in 70 years."
The Liberal Democrats accused Sunak of "sneaking out" the documents "while the world is distracted with Boris Johnson's Partygate barbecue." They added, "People will be more concerned today about the incredible tax hikes Rishi Sunak has imposed on them."
Sunak publicly declared his satisfaction with releasing his tax return for transparency. During a visit to north Wales, he was asked if, given his wealth, he could understand what it's like for people struggling to heat their homes. He responded, "Ultimately, what people want is what I'm going to do for them."
While it's not standard for heads of state to publish their tax returns, some of Sunak's predecessors have done so in recent years. Former Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron revealed his tax return in 2016, following revelations about his late father's overseas fund featured in the Panama Papers. Theresa May released her tax return during her Tory leadership bid in 2016 but failed to do so when she was prime minister. The two previous prime ministers, Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, did not publish their tax returns.
Murky waters around Ms. Murty, Sunak's partner, arose when she revealed she held non-dom status, meaning she didn't pay UK tax on her foreign income. She's the daughter of the billionaire founder of Indian IT giant Infosys and owns a share of the company, entitling her to bonus payments.
Under political pressure, Ms. Murty announced she would pay UK tax on her foreign income but maintain her non-dom status. Around the same time, Sunak confessed he had held a U.S. permit - allowing him to reside permanently in that country - while he was chancellor. He surrendered the green card in October 2021, ahead of his first US trip as a UK government minister.
Following these revelations, Sunak referred himself to the Prime Minister's ethics advisor, who cleared him of breaching ministerial subjugate the disclosure of his financial arrangements.
The papers reveal that all of Sunak's investment income and capital gains are linked to a single US-based mutual fund, listed as a "blind trust" arrangement on the register of ministers' interests. Politicians with stock portfolios and investments often set up blind trusts when they get government jobs to continue earning money from their investments without knowing where the money is invested to avoid any conflicts of interest.
The documents also show that Sunak paid tax in the US on returns in the country. A reward is a sum of cash paid by a company to its shareholders from its profits. The files claim these US dividends were also subject to tax in the UK. The document explains that Sunak's former green card status did not affect his tax situation in either the UK or the US during the reported fiscal years.
- Rishi Sunak's tax payment history reveals that he paid £227,350 in taxes for the year 2019/20, £393,217 for the year 2020/21, and £432,493 for the year 2021/22.
- Sunak's business ventures include an American investment fund, which has been a source of income for him.
- The UK's political landscape often involves discussions about taxes, especially in light of Sunak's wealth and his tax obligations, given his financial transparency issues in the past.
- General news outlets regularly cover the financial dealings of political figures, including their tax returns, as part of efforts to promote financial transparency and maintain public trust.
