In an interview with The Sun, responding to attacks by opposition lawmakers on his multimillion-dollar wife, he said: “She loves her country as much as I love mine.” Mr Sunak told the Sun: “I do not think people have a problem with an Indian living on Downing Street.” The chancellor came out in a scuffle after Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer accused him of “breathtaking hypocrisy” over his Indian-born “non-dom” wife. This means that because she is an Indian citizen, she does not have to pay tax in the UK on income from foreign investment or profits, but pays taxes in the UK on her income in the UK. Image: Akhshata Murty’s father is a billionaire businessman in India Mr Sunak claimed that the attacks on his wife, Akshata Murty, were unpleasant and unjust, and insisted that his wife had done nothing wrong or violated any of the rules, but had followed the letter of the law. “I would hope most fair people would understand – although I think it’s a confusing situation from another country,” he said. “Every penny he earns in the UK pays taxes in the UK, of course he does. “And every penny he earns internationally, for example in India, would pay all the taxes for it. “This is how the system works for people like the ones who are international and have moved here.” Use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 0:37 “The chancellor is completely out of contact” Rejecting Sir Keir’s allegations of hypocrisy, Mr Sunak acknowledged that the non-settlement status had been tarnished by some of British descent who tried to use it to evade taxation. However, he insisted that this is not an attempt to pay less tax, saying: “Rates do not make a difference. “I can say that people find this situation confusing. “But the bottom line is that my wife was born in India, she grew up in India. Her family home is in India, she obviously has a very close relationship. He has investments and a career independent of me. “He had it long before we met, before he moved to this country. “It would not be logical or fair to ask her to sever ties with her country because she happens to be married to me. “She loves her country. Like me, I would never dream of giving up British citizenship. And I imagine most people would not.” Image: Mr Sunak insists his wife has not broken any rules But Mr Sunak said he was not a British national and could not have dual citizenship while remaining an Indian, so he paid taxes in both countries. “Those are her choices, right?” he said. “She is a private individual and of course I support my wife’s choices. It is not owned by her husband. “Yes, she is in politics, and we understand that, but I think you know, we understand that she can be independent of her husband on her own. “She has had her own career. She has her own investments and she owes the taxes she owes to the UK. She does 100% what this country asks of her.” Mr Sunak said it was unfair to chase his wife because he was a private individual. He added: “I am an elected politician. So I know what I wrote. “And you know that my motivation in this is to try to do the right thing for the country. “And I know this is not always popular. So I did not go into it to have popular titles, I went into it to do what I think is right. “And I’m registered for it and you know, you’re going to be criticized for the decisions you make. But it ‘s different when people try to attack you by coming to your family and especially your wife. It’ s unpleasant, especially when it has done nothing wrong. “She has not broken any rules. The letter of the law followed. “And if she lived here and was not just married to me, obviously it would not be relevant at all.” Use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 0:37 “The chancellor is completely out of contact” He continued: “There is a difference between people who are elected and, obviously, rightly subject to control and responsibility. And that’s perfectly fair and reasonable. “But their families are not elected politicians. They are private. And especially because he has done nothing wrong.” Regarding her status as a non-resident, she said: “I think in the past the British were trying to use this thing to avoid paying any tax in the UK. I can see it from my inbox, right? This is a very clear perception. “It simply came to our notice then. She is not a British citizen. He is from another country. He is from India. “Her family is there. There, you know, she will eventually want to go and take care of her parents as they grow up. “He pays full tax in the UK for every penny he earns here in the same way he pays full international tax for every penny he earns internationally in, say, India.” Mr Sunak also claimed that people were using his family property to attack him, saying: “This is an attempt to slander my father-in-law, of whom I am very proud. “This guy came out of nowhere and set up a world-class business that employs I think about a quarter of a million people around the world and changed the face of India. “If I achieved one tenth of what my father-in-law achieved in his life, I would be a happy person. I am really proud of what he has achieved.”
