Boris Johnson has raked in £2.6m in earnings, donations and gifts in past year

Former PM has accepted record donation and outside earnings total £1.3m in past 12 months

Boris Johnson (PA)

Boris Johnson has raked in more than £2.6m in earnings, donations and benefits in kind in the past year, according to analysis by The Independent.

The former prime minister is under renewed pressure over his finances after it emerged that he accepted a record £1m loan from a Brexiteer business and enjoyed an £800,000 line of credit while he was at No 10.

The latest reports say Mr Johnson and his family made free use of the Dominican Republic villa owned by his cousin Sam Blyth, who acted as a guarantor for the credit facility.

But Mr Johnson’s spokesman has argued it did not need to be registered because it came from a family member providing a personal benefit. “All Boris Johnson’s financial interests are and were properly declared,” they said.

Close analysis of Mr Johnson’s registered interests shows that the former Tory leader has made huge sums of money since he was pushed out of No 10 in September.

His outside earnings have totall over £1.3m in the past 12 months – including more than £750,000 in fees for just three speeches he gave in November to investment banking firm Centerview Partners, the Hindustan Times and the CNN Global Summit Lisbon.

Mr Johnson has also received just over £1.2m in donations and the value of hospitality, gifts and benefits in kind, including a £1m donation from Thai-based Brexiteer businessman Christopher Harbourne, the biggest single donation to any MP on record.

Despite his salary and outside earnings, the former prime minister has also enjoyed use of accommodation worth just over £60,000 from Lord Bamford and Lady Bamford, along with a marquee and catering for his summer wedding party worth £23,000.

The Mirror said the former PM has been residing at a £20m property in Knightsbridge “around the corner from Harrods” owned by Lady Bamford, the wife of the JCB tycoon Tory donor.

Along with the use of the London property, the Bamfords are also thought to have allowed the former PM and his family use of a cottage on their Daylesford Estate in the Cotswolds.

But a source close to Mr Johnson denied a suggestion by the paper that he was living entirely rent-free, and rejected the suggestion that he had under-declared the value of the donation in kind.

“All of Boris Johnston’s interests including accommodation are properly registered and published in the Register of Members Interests,” said the spokesperson.

Liberal Democrat chief whip Wendy Chamberlain said it was “clear as day he’s filling up his coffers and plotting a comeback”. She added: “This disgraced prime minister should not be granted one – Johnson must publicly rule out a comeback.”

Meanwhile, it also emerged that Mr Johnson put a dinner costing more than £4,000 on a government credit card while with staff in New York for a UN General Assembly meeting in September 2021.

The bill for £4,445.07 for the meal at Smith & Wollensky’s enjoyed by Mr Johnson and his entourage emerged in a question posed by Labour.

“While families are sick with worry struggling to make ends meet, this waste of public money is obscene,” said deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner.

Foreign Office minister David Rutley said: “Expenditure was subject to normal FCDO controls and an appropriate use of public money.”