Nadhim Zahawi, the former Chancellor and current Member of Parliament, disclosed to the BBC that he has paid nearly £5 million to authorities to resolve his tax matters.

Zahawi faced repercussions last year when an ethics investigation revealed his failure to disclose an ongoing HMRC inquiry into his taxes, leading to his dismissal as Tory Party chairman. Expressing regret for not providing clearer information in his ministerial declaration regarding the settlement, Zahawi maintained that HMRC determined the error to be non-intentional and characterized it as "careless."

The saga unfolded when it was revealed that Zahawi had reached a substantial tax settlement with HMRC concerning shares in YouGov, a polling company he established prior to his parliamentary tenure. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak appointed Sir Laurie Magnus to conduct an investigation, which uncovered Zahawi's communication with HMRC dating back to April 2021, with an agreement reached in August 2022 and finalized in September 2022. However, Zahawi's failure to adequately disclose these interactions within the government and publicly was deemed insufficient by Magnus.

Addressing the matter on the BBC's "Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg" program, Zahawi, who will not seek re-election as the MP for Stratford-on-Avon, clarified that the total sum he paid to settle the issue was just under £5 million. Acknowledging his own errors, Zahawi expressed remorse for the lack of clarity in his ministerial declaration regarding the settlement details, emphasizing HMRC's determination that the mistake was not deliberate but rather careless. Photo by UK Government, Wikimedia commons.