Jeremy Hunt pockets a whopping £14million from sale of the education business he co-owned with a friend
The Health Secretary becomes one of the UK's richest politicians, but says he will use the money to fund campaigns when he leaves parliament
HEALTH Secretary Jeremy Hunt has pocked just over £14m from the sale of an education listings business that he co-owned with a friend.
Hotcourses, set up by Mr Hunt in 1996, has been sold to Australian firm IDP Education for £30m.
Mr Hunt owns a 48% stake in the firm, and has said he will use the money to fund campaigns after he leaves politics.
He said: "I am incredibly proud to have set up a successful business, even prouder of the current Hotcourses team who have taken it from strength to strength, and intend to use a significant proportion of the proceeds to campaign for causes I believe in when I eventually leave frontline politics."
The MP stepped down as a director but retained his shareholding in the business. It is based in London but employs more than 300 staff worldwide.
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The deal will make Mr Hunt one of the richest politicians in the UK.
Wealth-X rated him as the fourth-richest cabinet minister in 2012, worth around £4.8million. Chancellor Philip Hammond, then the Defence Secretary, was estimated to be worth £8.2million.
But neither of them come to close to Tory MP Richard Benyon, thought to be the richest British politician with an estimated wealth of £110million.
Hotcourses lists 200,000 courses from training providers including everything from pottery to photography and ... nursing.
The news comes as outrage has erupted among MPs and the public at cancelled operations, a lack of beds and huge waiting times at over-run hospitals across the country.
Yesterday senior doctors renewed their attack after the Prime Minister told GPs to open up or face funding cuts.
Dr Helen Stokes Lampard, chair of the Royal College of Physicians said it was never right for under-pressure GPs to send patients to A&E instead of finding time to see them.
But she insisted it was a question of money and GPs were doing all they could to help. She said: “We have an underfunded and under-resourced service.”
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn yesterday said he would consider a special tax to fund the NHS.
He reiterated Labour would reverse £70 billion of corporation and other tax cuts planned by the Tories to help pay for the health service.
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