10.10 a.m. BST 10:10
Ed Miliband said his wife Risi Sunak, who claims his status is “legal, but is it right?” Speaking to Sky News, the shadow foreign minister on climate change and clean ground said: Non-dom status is legal, but I think we need to be clear that non-dom status is used to … pay less tax than you would otherwise. You do not need to be a non-dom. You choose to do it … I think there are reasonable questions to ask Rishi Sunak about this. Asked if the traffic is above the dashboard, he said: I think it’s legal, but is it right? He added that the chancellor should give an “explanation” for his wife’s decision. It’s the chancellor of the United Kingdom who is asking people to pay more taxes. Is it true that his immediate family is protected by British taxes? I think Rishi Sunak and his family should think about that.
10.08 a.m. BST 10:08
Rupert Neate As it turned out, the multimillionaire wife of Rishi Sunak is claiming the non-residential status, which allows her to save millions of pounds in tax on the dividends received by her family business IT empire. Akshata Murthy, which receives about £ 11.5 million in annual dividends from its stake in Indian IT company Infosys, declares non-dom status, a system that allows people to avoid taxing foreign profits. Murthy, the daughter of billionaire Infosys founder, owns a 0.93% stake in the tech company worth about 90 690 million. The company’s most recent accounts suggest that Murthy’s share would have generated 11 11.6 million in dividend payments in the last tax year. Under UK tax law, Murthy being a non-resident would mean that she would not have to pay dividend tax on foreign companies. Infosys is headquartered in Bengaluru, India and is listed on the Indian and New York Stock Exchanges. In contrast, UK taxpayers pay a 38.1% tax on dividend payments. A Murthy spokeswoman said: Akshata Murthy is a citizen of India, her country of birth and her parents’ homeland. India does not allow its citizens to have the citizenship of another country at the same time. Thus, under British law, Ms Murthy is treated as a non-resident for UK tax purposes. It will always continue to pay taxes in the UK for all its income in the UK. The Ministry of Finance declined to comment. It comes a day after it was revealed that Sunak and Mercy had donated more than 100 100,000 to the chancellor’s old private school, Winchester College. It is understood that Sunak, the chancellor, declared his wife’s tax status to the Cabinet when she became a minister in 2018, while he had also informed the Ministry of Finance “to manage any possible conflicts”. Tulip Siddiq, the shadow finance minister at the finance ministry, said: The chancellor imposed a tax increase after a tax increase on the British people. It is shocking that – at the same time – his family could benefit from tax cuts. This is another example of Tories who believe it is one rule for them and another for everyone else. Risi Sunak now urgently needs to explain how much he and his family have saved from their own tax accounts at a time when he was taxing millions of working-class families and choosing to leave 2. 2,620 a year in a worse situation. Read more here:
9.54 a.m. BST 09:54
Boris Johnson said “nuclear is coming home” as a result of the government’s energy strategy. Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) For years, governments have avoided major energy decisions, but not this one. Our Energy Security Strategy sets out our plans to make British energy cleaner, more affordable and safer. pic.twitter.com/BQwuR4FawV April 7, 2022 In a video on social media to promote the plan, which is finally published on Thursday after a series of delays and controversy in the cabinet, the prime minister said: In the country that was the first to divorce the individual, the first to really harness its power to light our homes and run our factories, we will lead the way once again. Nuclear is coming home. So instead of a new reactor every decade, we will have a new reactor every year. For years, governments have avoided major energy decisions, but not this one. We have the ambition, we have the plan and we are going to bring clean, affordable safe power to people for future generations.
9.43 a.m. BST 09:43
Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said it was “completely unfair” to look into the tax affairs of Rishi Sunak’s uninhabited wife, Akshata Murty. He told Sky News: It is completely unfair to bring in someone who is not a politician and actually attack him in a way that happens. He made it very clear that as an Indian citizen he could not have dual citizenship and that he had a non-resident status here in the United Kingdom. Now, after 15 years of residence here she will have her residence, but for the time being she pays UK income tax, as I understand it, and she pays non-UK income tax abroad – that means non-resident status. But I’m not here to comment on her tax cases. He added: I’m totally comfortable with people who have businesses, people who work as individuals, I’m totally comfortable with that. I’m not an expert in financial regulation, but I believe that people have every right to pursue their own business arrangements. I came here to say clearly that I think her tax affairs are her business. Updated at 9.52 a.m. BST
9.38 a.m. BST 09:38
A former Ofgem CEO said the government’s energy security strategy has little to do with the cost-of-living crisis now and fails to improve the efficiency of homes. Dermot Nolan told BBC Radio 4 today: Honestly it is not something so radically new and different. The worrying thing to say in a period of rising energy prices is that there are very few things that can be done in the short term. Most of these decisions will take a long time to have an impact and in the short term we will continue to depend on fossil fuels and the prices that consumers will pay will still depend on the price of gas. One failure, which could help in the short to medium term, is the lack of focus on energy efficiency, on insulation, on improving the quality of people’s homes – I think it is a missed opportunity. Updated at 9.53 a.m. BST
9.26 a.m. BST 09:26
Ed Miliband said some Tory supporters “hold the government’s energy policy as a ransom”. Speaking to the BBC, the shadow climate change and the clear zero Secretary of Labor said: Onshore wind is the cheapest and fastest form of energy we can get. It has been blocked since 2015 because of government rules, not because of the views of the people … but because some Tory supporters hold the government’s energy policy as a ransom … and as a result people pay higher bills. Ministers have promised cleaner and more affordable energy in the UK, aiming to make up 95% of low-carbon electricity by 2030. Miliband added: The government wanted to have a goal of doubling the onshore wind… equivalent to building five new nuclear power plants by 2030. I am in favor of new nuclear power plants, but the plants that the government is talking about today will not be built for at least a decade. That’s why this strategy is so deeply wrong. Updated at 9.54 a.m. BST
9.15 a.m. BST 09:15
Nicola Slauson The secretary of state acknowledged that the government’s energy security strategy would not do much to mitigate the rapid fuel bills now, adding that it was “more of an average response of three, four, five years” before it was unveiled later today. Stressing the impact it will have on energy bills now, Kwasi Kwarteng told Sky News: You are right in saying that the strategy is more medium-term, three, four or five years …
title: “Uk Politics Live Tories Energy Strategy More Of A Three Four Five Year Answer Minister Admits Politics " ShowToc: true date: “2022-11-16” author: “Merlin Lindsey”
10.22 a.m. BST 10:22
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said energy bills were rising around the world and “absolutely soared” after Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. “We can not go on like this,” he said in a video on social media promoting his new energy strategy. The plan has been criticized for not saying enough about tackling high bills now, instead focusing on long-term changes in energy production. Johnson said the plan would make British energy “cleaner, more affordable and safer”. In addition to the already announced $ 9 billion package to help with rising costs, the government will “reduce these bills” by “upgrading homes to use less energy.” Ending its dependence on foreign oil and gas will make supplies more secure, he said, with a shift to British fossil fuels as the transition to cleaner energy. That would mean “capturing their emissions and storing them safely under the sea,” he said – but carbon sequestration projects have been promised by successive governments with no real progress.
10.17 a.m. BST 10:17
Ed Miliband said the government should ban trans conversion therapy. Speaking to Sky News, he said: I think there are strong views on many aspects here, but I will give you my opinion on that. I think trans people are facing incredible obstacles and stigma in our society. I was talking to a trans person the other day about this. I think the way this debate was conducted – these anatomical debates – I think is really awful for so many trans people in our country. Asked if trans conversion therapy should be banned, he said “yes”. He also spoke about trans women participating in women’s sports, saying there should be “justice” and not a general ban. He said: I think it is a decision of the sports bodies … I think they are different in different sports. I think the principle here is that we need justice in sports.
10:15 BST 10:15
Kwasi Kwarteng insisted that Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s wife, Akshata Murty, had not been “protected” from paying the British tax. He told BBC Breakfast: I was very interested in transparency, it was very clear to me what had happened. I think the chancellor was very honest, very clear, and in the end she is private, she is not a politician, and I think her cases were completely transparent and there is no hint of any wrongdoing. So, I come up with ideas, and to see them flush it out, it’s really fun. Asked if she protects herself from taxes, Kwarteng said: I do not think this is true at all, protection sounds like you avoid things. I think it was very clear, it was very transparent, the chancellor was very transparent and this non-settlement status has been part of the UK tax system for more than 200 years.
10.10 a.m. BST 10:10
Ed Miliband said his wife Risi Sunak, who claims his status is “legal, but is it right?” Speaking to Sky News, the shadow foreign minister on climate change and clean ground said: Non-dom status is legal, but I think we need to be clear that non-dom status is used to … pay less tax than you would otherwise. You do not need to be a non-dom. You choose to do it … I think there are reasonable questions to ask Rishi Sunak about this. Asked if the traffic is above the dashboard, he said: I think it’s legal, but is it right? He added that the chancellor should give an “explanation” for his wife’s decision. It’s the chancellor of the United Kingdom who is asking people to pay more taxes. Is it true that his immediate family is protected by British taxes? I think Rishi Sunak and his family should think about that.
10.08 a.m. BST 10:08
Rupert Neate As it turned out, the multimillionaire wife of Rishi Sunak is claiming the non-residential status, which allows her to save millions of pounds in tax on the dividends received by her family business IT empire. Akshata Murthy, which receives about £ 11.5 million in annual dividends from its stake in Indian IT company Infosys, declares non-dom status, a system that allows people to avoid taxing foreign profits. Murthy, the daughter of billionaire Infosys founder, owns a 0.93% stake in the tech company worth about 90 690 million. The company’s most recent accounts suggest that Murthy’s share would have generated 11 11.6 million in dividend payments in the last tax year. Under UK tax law, Murthy being a non-resident would mean that she would not have to pay dividend tax on foreign companies. Infosys is headquartered in Bengaluru, India and is listed on the Indian and New York Stock Exchanges. In contrast, UK taxpayers pay a 38.1% tax on dividend payments. A Murthy spokeswoman said: Akshata Murthy is a citizen of India, her country of birth and her parents’ homeland. India does not allow its citizens to have the citizenship of another country at the same time. Thus, under British law, Ms Murthy is treated as a non-resident for UK tax purposes. It will always continue to pay taxes in the UK for all its income in the UK. The Ministry of Finance declined to comment. It comes a day after it was revealed that Sunak and Mercy had donated more than 100 100,000 to the chancellor’s old private school, Winchester College. It is understood that Sunak, the chancellor, declared his wife’s tax status to the Cabinet when she became a minister in 2018, while he had also informed the Ministry of Finance “to manage any possible conflicts”. Tulip Siddiq, the shadow finance minister at the finance ministry, said: The chancellor imposed a tax increase after a tax increase on the British people. It is shocking that – at the same time – his family could benefit from tax cuts. This is another example of Tories who believe it is one rule for them and another for everyone else. Risi Sunak now urgently needs to explain how much he and his family have saved from their own tax accounts at a time when he was taxing millions of working-class families and choosing to leave 2. 2,620 a year in a worse situation. Read more here:
9.54 a.m. BST 09:54
Boris Johnson said “nuclear is coming home” as a result of the government’s energy strategy. Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) For years, governments have avoided major energy decisions, but not this one. Our Energy Security Strategy sets out our plans to make British energy cleaner, more affordable and safer. pic.twitter.com/BQwuR4FawV April 7, 2022 In a video on social media to promote the plan, which is finally published on Thursday after a series of delays and controversy in the cabinet, the prime minister said: In the country that was the first to divorce the individual, the first to really harness its power to light our homes and run our factories, we will lead the way once again. Nuclear is coming home. So instead of a new reactor every decade, we will have a new reactor every year. For years, governments have avoided major energy decisions, but not this one. We have the ambition, we have the plan and we are going to bring clean, affordable safe power to people for future generations.
9.43 a.m. BST 09:43
Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said it was “completely unfair” to look into the tax affairs of Rishi Sunak’s uninhabited wife, Akshata Murty. He told Sky News: It is completely unfair to bring in someone who is not a politician and actually attack him in a way that happens. He made it very clear that as an Indian citizen he could not have dual citizenship and that he had a non-resident status here in the United Kingdom. Now, after 15 years of residence here she will have her residence, but for the time being she pays UK income tax, as I understand it, and she pays non-UK income tax abroad – that means non-resident status. But I’m not here to comment on her tax cases. He added: I am completely comfortable with people who have businesses, people who work as individuals, …
