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Former Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi has confirmed to the BBC that he paid nearly £5 million to authorities to settle his tax affairs.
The settlement was related to an investigation by HMRC into the allocation of shares in YouGov, a polling company he had founded before becoming an MP.
Mr. Zahawi expressed regret for not being more explicit in his ministerial declaration regarding the tax settlement. He acknowledged that he should have provided more details about how the settlement was reached. However, he emphasized that HMRC determined the error to be non-deliberate and classified it as a “careless mistake.”
The controversy surrounding Mr. Zahawi’s taxes led to his dismissal as Tory Party chairman in January of last year, following an ethics inquiry initiated by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. The inquiry found that Mr. Zahawi had not adequately disclosed his tax affairs being investigated by HMRC and concluded that there had been a serious breach of the ministerial code.
Mr. Zahawi, who announced that he would be stepping down as MP for Stratford-on-Avon at the next election, admitted that the responsibility for his mistakes lies with him. He expressed regret for not providing sufficient information about the tax settlement in his ministerial declaration.