The Prime Minister’s wife, Akshata Murty, earned £13m last year as a result of the shares she owns in Infosys.
In yet another Tory sleaze row, a top Tory minister has been accused of offering a VIP lane to Rishi Sunak’s wife’s family firm in which she has £624 million worth of shares, saying he would be more than happy to help the firm grow in the UK.
Tory trade minister Lord Dominic Johnson said he was “keen to see a bigger Infosys presence in the UK and would be happy to do what he could to facilitate that”, the Mirror has reported, following a Freedom of Information request.
The Prime Minister’s wife, Akshata Murty, earned £13m last year as a result of the shares she owns in Infosys.
During a meeting last April between Lord Johnson and Infosys, Johnson reassured the company that he was keen for them to grow in the UK and would be happy to do what he could to facilitate that.
Lord Johnson also advised the firm on how to secure visas for UK staff and also discussed how a free trade agreement between India and the UK would benefit Infosys.
He said: “We value the relationship with Infosys and will continue to engage at a Ministerial level when requested of us.”
The latest revelations will once again give rise to accusations of Tory cronyism.
Shadow Paymaster General Jonathan Ashworth told the Mirror: “After the Tories handed billions in taxpayers’ cash to cronies for duff PPE, the public will wonder why an outfit so personally close to Rishi Sunak appears to have been granted this VIP access. There are serious questions to answer.”
Basit Mahmood is editor of Left Foot Forward
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