World News: Wife of UK finance minister agrees to stop avoiding UK tax – Gulf Digital News

World News: Wife of UK finance minister agrees to stop avoiding UK tax – Gulf Digital News

Akshata Murthy, the wife of British finance minister Rishi Sunak, said on Friday that she would stop avoiding British tax on her foreign income -- bowing to pressure which her husband had earlier dismissed as a political smear.

The public anger over Murthy's tax status has been heightened by her husband's decision to increase payroll taxes at a time when surging inflation leaves Britons facing the biggest cost-of-living squeeze since records began in 1956.

Murthy, an Indian citizen, is eligible for so-called "non-domiciled" status in Britain, something available to foreign nationals who do not regard Britain as their permanent home. That in turn allowed her to opt to pay UK tax only on income she earned in or transferred to Britain.

Murthy is the daughter one of the founders of Indian IT giant Infosys and owns about 0.9% of the company -- entitling her to a dividend payment worth 11.6 million pounds ($15.1 million) last year.

In a statement late on Friday, after two days of critical media coverage, Murthy said she would pay British tax on her global income, including dividends and capital gains, for the 2021/22 tax year and in future.

"I understand and appreciate the British sense of fairness and I do