Rishi Sunak, the British Prime Minister, is being examined by parliament’s standards watchdog over whether he correctly revealed his wife’s interest in a childcare company that stands to benefit from new government policy.
According to a list of open inquiries on Parliament’s website on Monday, the probe into a “declaration of interest” began on 13 April.
Opposition parties had raised concerns about media reports that Sunak’s wife, Akshata Murthy, was a shareholder in a company scheduled to benefit from childcare sector funding outlined in the March budget.
“We are happy to assist the commissioner to clarify how this has been transparently declared as a ministerial interest,” Sunak’s spokesperson said, confirming the investigation was linked to the childcare firm.
The investigation is an embarrassment for Sunak, who took office in October vowing to run a government with honesty “at every level” in order to boost his party’s fortunes ahead of a national election next year.
Sunak and Murthy are the wealthiest people to ever live in 10 Downing Street. Murthy is the daughter of one of Infosys’ founders and owns roughly 0.9 percent of the company, which is worth nearly $600 million based on Monday’s share price.
While Sunak was finance minister, the pair faced criticism and public outrage over Murthy’s “non-domiciled” tax status, which meant she did not pay tax in Britain on her profits abroad. She later renounced her status and stated that she would pay British tax on her worldwide earnings.
The commissioner, who did not provide any details about the probe, is in charge of the House of Commons code of conduct and examines any alleged violations.
Members of parliament are required under the code of conduct to disclose any financial interests that could reasonably be regarded to influence their activity in parliament.
If the investigation finds a breach, the Commissioner can require Sunak to apologise and set out steps to avoid any future errors, or refer him to a committee which has the power to suspend or expel him from parliament.
Opposition Labour Party deputy leader Angela Rayner said Sunak should publish an updated register of ministerial interests before municipal elections next month, saying the failure to do so had left “a transparency black hole which is enabling the prime minister and those he has appointed to dodge proper scrutiny of their affairs”.
