Sir Keir Starmer publishes his tax returns
Sir Keir Starmer paid £67,033 to HMRC in the last financial year, his tax returns show.
The Labour leader published the details after Rishi Sunak released his on Wednesday, following months of political pressure.
Sir Keir’s document shows he paid £67,033 in total tax for the 2021/22 financial year, and £51,547 the previous year.
It revealed that he made capital gains of £85,466 in the financial year 2021/22, on which he paid £23,930 in capital gains tax.
Notes made in the return said the capital gains tax reflected his share of the capital gains when his sister decided to sell a house he helped her to buy.
As leader of the opposition Sir Keir took home £126,154 in the same year.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on Wednesday that he was “glad” to publish his financial affairs, which showed he paid £432,493 in tax in 2021/22.
That included £325,826 in capital gains tax and £120,604 in UK income tax on a total of £1.9m in the last tax year, the documents showed.
Sir Keir Starmer’s total income figures
Sir Keir welcomed the move by Mr Sunak and pledged to publish his own.
He would not comment on the contents of Mr Sunak’s, saying it is for “others to analyse”.
(L-R) Figures for 2020/21 and 2021/22
Following the release of Mr Starmer’s tax return, tax consultant Ray McCann told Sky News: “This is even less interesting than the prime minister!
“It is clear that both the prime minister and Sir Keir have provided only a summary and have not ‘published their tax returns’.
“The capital gains tax computation may also be abridged as there is no indication that he has utilised the annual exempt capital gains tax amount so the chargeable gain may be net of that.
“No charitable donations but I suspect that these may have been left out of the summary. Without a calculation of the tax, it is impossible to be sure.
“Otherwise fairly routine and would not give rise to any concerns.”
Dan Neidle, the founder of Tax Associates, said the details released by Mr Starmer were “slightly more interesting” than the prime minister’s.
He pointed out that the tax the Labour leader paid on the capital gains made from his sister’s house sale should have been £20,486, given he is entitled to a £12,300 allowance with the rest taxed at 28%.
Mr Neidle said it appears Mr Starmer actually paid £23,930 in capital gains tax because he chose not to use the allowance.
Mr Sunak said he had published his tax returns “in the interests of transparency, as I said I would, and I’m glad to have done that”, adding he did not think the public was that interested.
The publication of the Labour leader’s tax return comes after it was reported that he enjoyed a special “tax-unregistered” pension scheme meaning that the lifetime allowance did not apply to his contributions as Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) between 2008 and 2013.
Shadow justice secretary Steve Reed rejected allegations that Mr Starmer was a hypocrite, telling Sky News: “It wasn’t Keir Starmer as Director of Public Prosecutions who set his own pension.
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“That was set by the Conservative government at the time so if people have problems with it they really need to speak to David Cameron and George Osborne,” he said.
A key part of Jeremy Hunt’s budget last week was his decision to abolish the lifetime allowance on pension savings, meaning people will now be allowed to put aside as much as they can in their private scheme without being taxed. The threshold had been £1m.
The Labour Party has pledged to reverse the plans if it wins power, calling it “a Tory tax cut for the rich”.
The party released analysis saying the policy proposed in Mr Hunt’s budget will save the wealthiest 1% of pensioners £45,000 when they retire.
Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves told Sky News it was “the wrong priority” amid the ongoing cost of living crisis.
Nigel Farage has told Sky News he “can’t be pushed or bullied” by anybody after Elon Musk said the Reform MP “doesn’t have what it takes” to lead his party.
In an interview with Sky’s political correspondent Ali Fortescue, Mr Farage said he has spoken with the billionaire owner of X since his criticism on 5 January, when Mr Musk said: “The Reform Party needs a new leader. Farage doesn’t have what it takes.”
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Asked if the pair are still friends, Mr Farage said: “Of course we’re friends. He just says what he thinks at any moment in time.”
He added he has “been in touch” with Mr Musk, though wouldn’t divulge what they had discussed.
“Look, he said lots of supportive things. He said one thing that wasn’t supportive. I mean, that’s just the way it is,” Mr Farage said.
Musk and Farage met in December. Pic: PA
Asked if he was afraid to criticise the tech mogul, the Clacton MP said the situation was “the opposite”, and he openly disagreed with Mr Musk on his views on far-right activist Tommy Robinson.
Mr Farage said: “What he [Musk] was saying online was that effectively Tommy Robinson was a political prisoner and I wouldn’t go along with that.
“If I had gone along with that, he wouldn’t have put out a tweet that was against me.
“By the way, you know, I can’t be pushed or bullied or made to change by anybody.
“I stick to what I believe.”
Mr Musk has endorsed Robinson and claimed he was “telling the truth” about grooming gangs, writing on X: “Free Tommy Robinson”.
But Mr Farage said that Robinson, who is serving an 18-month jail term for contempt of court, isn’t welcome in Reform UK and neither are his supporters.
He said: “If people within Reform think Tommy Robinson should be a member of Reform and play a central role in Reform, that disagreement is absolutely fundamental.
“I’ve never wanted to work with people who were active in the BNP. I’ve made that clear right throughout the last decade of my on/off political career. So that’s what the point of difference is.”
Despite their disagreement, Mr Farage said he is confident Mr Musk will continue to support Reform and “may well” still give money to it.
The entrepreneur has previously spoken positively about Reform UK and there have been suggestions he could make a multi-million-pound donation in its favour.
Devolution plans ‘denial of democracy’
Mr Farage was speaking from Reform’s South East of England Conference, one of a series of regional events aimed at building up the party’s support base.
Elsewhere in the interview, he hit out at the Labour government’s devolution plans which could see some local elections scheduled for May postponed.
This would apply when councils seek permission to reorganise, so that smaller district authorities merge with other nearby ones to give them more sway over their area.
Mr Farage, who is hoping to make gains in the spring contests, claimed the plans are not about devolution but about “elections being cancelled”.
“I thought only dictators cancelled elections. This is unbelievable and devolution or a change to local government structures is being used as an excuse,” he said.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage earlier this month. Pic: PA
He claimed Tory-controlled councils are “grabbing it like it’s a life belt”, because they fear losing seats to Reform.
“It’s an absolute denial of democracy,” he added.
Mr Farage was also asked why many Reform members don’t like to speak on camera about why they support his party.
He said he did not accept there was a toxicity associated with Reform and claimed there was “institutional bias against anybody that isn’t left of centre”.
Specialist search teams, police dogs and divers have been dispatched to find two sisters who vanished in Aberdeen three days ago.
Eliza and Henrietta Huszti, both 32, were last seen on CCTV in the city’s Market Street at Victoria Bridge at about 2.12am on Tuesday.
The siblings were captured crossing the bridge and turning right onto a footpath next to the River Dee in the direction of Aberdeen Boat Club.
Henrietta Huszti. Pic: Police Scotland
Eliza Huszti. Pic: Police Scotland
Police Scotland has launched a major search and said it is carrying out “extensive inquires” in an effort to find the women.
Chief Inspector Darren Bruce said: “Local officers, led by specialist search advisors, are being assisted by resources including police dogs and our marine unit.”
Aberdeenshire Drone Services told Sky News it has offered to help in the search and is waiting to hear back from Police Scotland.
CCTV of the sisters. Pic: Police Scotland
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The sisters, from Aberdeen city centre, are described as slim with long brown hair.
Police said the Torry side of Victoria Bridge where the sisters were last seen contains many commercial and industrial units, with searches taking place in the vicinity.
The force urged businesses in and around the South Esplanade and Menzies Road area to review CCTV footage recorded in the early hours of Tuesday in case it captured anything of significance.
Drivers with relevant dashcam footage are also urged to come forward.
CI Bruce added: “We are continuing to speak to people who know Eliza and Henrietta and we urge anyone who has seen them or who has any information regarding their whereabouts to please contact 101.”
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