Rishi Sunak's wife gives up childcare shares after PM conflict of interest row
Rishi Sunak's wife has given up her shares in a childcare firm that was given a boost in the Budget, it has been announced.
Akshata Murty donated her stake in Koru Kids to charity after her involvement became an "unfair distraction" for the charity, a statement said. The Prime Minister faced a standards probe after failing to declare Mrs Murty's interest in the firm, which was set to benefit from incentives.
Koru Kids chief executive Rachel Carrell said that interest meant that work to improve access to care for families was "lost in the media attention surrounding this investment". She added: "As we move into 2024, we need to ensure that school-age children are not left behind in any new plans that materialise from the government's levelling up plans for childcare, without any distractions for our business.”
Last August Mr Sunak made a humiliating apology for failing to tell MPs about the shares. He was found to have "inadvertently" broken the MPs' code of conduct by not declaring Mrs Murty's stake when questioned by MPs. He then failed to correct the record in a letter to a committee chairman days later.
Commons standards commissioner Daniel Greenberg said Mr Sunak should have mentioned it when addressing the cross-party liaison committee during a grilling on March 28. He found that rules had been broken but accepted that Mr Sunak - who promised to lead a Government of "integrity, professionalism, and accountability" - had got "confused".
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Downing Street had initially maintained the PM had followed the rules "to the letter". Koru Kids is one of six private childcare providers set to benefit from a Government pilot scheme announced by Chancellor Jeremy Hunt to incentivise recruitment of childminders.
When asked by Labour MP Cat McKinnell whether he had anything to declare in relation to the move, Mr Sunak told MPs in March: "No, all my disclosures are declared in the normal way.” Mr Greenberg's inquiry was opened the following month after the PM's links to the company were made public.
In his ruling the commissioner said: "In accordance with the Code, Ms Murty's shareholding was a relevant interest that should have been declared during the Liaison Committee meeting on 28 March 2023." But he said he was satisfied Mr Sunak had confused complex rules.
In a letter published with the ruling, the PM wrote: "Should this scenario arise again, I have acknowledged that I have a duty to write to the Committee after my appearance to correct the record. I accept and once again apologise that my letter to the Liaison Committee on 4 April 2023 was not sufficiently expansive, as it confused the language of registration and declaration."
Ms Murty’s shares have been gifted to ShareGift, a UK-registered charity that accepts donations in the form of shares. They were donated in December. The Prime Minister's official spokesman declined to comment on the donation.
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