An inquiry was launched after concerns were raised about the shares held by Sunak’s wife Akshata Murty in childminding agency Koru Kids, which was set to benefit regarding incentives to boost childminder numbers announced in the Budget.
The parliamentary commissioner for standards, Daniel Greenberg, has concluded that Sunak had ‘confused’ the rules regarding registering and declaring interests.
In April, it was alleged that the prime minister’ had failed to declare that Murty held shares in Koru Kids, which is one of six childminding agencies chosen by the Government as part of scheme paying new childminders a £1,200 bonus to sign up.
The investigation was launched after Sunak did not mention his wife held shares in the childminding agency during a meeting of the Liasion Committee when questioned by MPs, but which he later declared on the list of ministerial interests.
The list of interests for ministers is separate from the registration of interests for all MPs.
In the report published yesterday (23 August), Greenberg said he was ‘satisfied’ that Sunak had ‘confused the concept of registration…with the concept of declaration of interests’ relating to the conduct of MPs.
Greenberg 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.’
He said, ‘I formed the view that the failure to declare arose out of this confusion and was accordingly inadvertent on the part of Mr Sunak.’
During Sunak’s appearance before the liaison committee, the Labour MP Catherine McKinnell asked him about the childminder incentive scheme in the recent budget.
When McKinnell asked Sunak if he had anything to declare in relation to the scheme, he replied, ‘No, all my disclosures are declared in the normal way.’
It was later revealed that the owners of Koru Kids had attended a Downing Street reception on the same evening as the committee meeting.
The prime minister's press secretary said, ‘The commissioner's investigation into the prime minister's declaration of interest has been resolved by way of rectification.
‘The prime minister takes seriously his responsibilities to register and declare all relevant interests.’
- The rectification report is available here