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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Politics
Mikey Smith

Nadhim Zahawi's tax bill would have covered rises for everyone in Stratford-upon-Avon

Nadhim Zahawi's mammoth tax settlement would have covered the tax rises hitting people in the town where he is MP this year, Labour has claimed.

The Tory chairman is said to have settled a bill worth around £3.7 million with HMRC, after admitting to a “careless” error in his tax arrangements.

Households are paying an average of £103 more in tax this year due to Rishi Sunak ’s decision to freeze income tax and NICs thresholds.

Labour’s number-crunching found amount of Mr Zahawi’s tax that went unpaid until recently would be enough to cover this year’s increase for 86,044 people.

That’s more than enough to pay the increase for all 30,000 people living in Stratford-upon-Avon, the town he represents as an MP.

And it would cover around 90% of the tax rise of the 97,000 people living across his entire constituency.

A Labour source said: “His constituents don’t get to dispute multi-million pound bills with the tax office – the hypocrisy stinks.”

Mr Zahawi is subject to an inquiry by the new independent adviser on ministers' interests, Sir Laurie Magnus, into declarations about his tax affairs.

He resolved a multimillion-pound tax dispute with HMRC by paying a penalty while serving as chancellor under former prime minister Boris Johnson.

Labour said Mr Zahawi's admitted carelessness should see him removed from Government.

Shadow foreign secretary David Lammy told Sky News: "When you've been chancellor of the exchequer and you said you've been careless despite the fact that offshore trusts have been set up in Gibraltar, I'm sorry, you really ought to resign or be sacked."

Mr Zahawi, in a statement on Monday, said he is "confident" he has "acted properly throughout".

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