Jeremy Corbyn has published details of his tax return in an effort to force Tory Chancellor Phillip Hammond to do the same - but questions were being asked over whether he declared his full income as Labour leader.
The MP revealed he earned £114,342 in 2015-16, and paid £35,298 in tax, according to a summary of his tax affairs published on his website.
But the summary suggests he only declared just over £77,000 in salary and allowances and £36,000 in pensions income. Corbyn would be expected to earn around £150,000 when his pay for being party leader was included.
The extra money Corbyn could receive is £69,000 for a full year. But he was only in the job for seven months - meaning he would only have been able to draw down around £40,000.
A spokesman for the Labour leader told The Telegraph the summary had been prepared by accountants after Corbyn published his tax return last year to exploit David Cameron’s vulnerability over offshore investments - but he had to swallow a £100 fine for handing in the document late, and he also failed to declare three pensions incomes.
The spokesman admitted the £40,000 did not appear on the formal P60 tax return form submitted to HM Revenue and Customs either. There is no record of Corbyn saying he had declined the leadership top-up payment.
It is illegal to fail to declare taxable income.
The move comes as Hammond has refused to publish details of his earnings ahead of this week’s Budget.
Labour thinks anyone earning more than £1 million should make details of their earnings available to help combat tax avoidance.
Hammond is one of the UK’s richest MPs, and reportedly had a net worth of £8.2million in 2014. He made his money principally through nursing home development.
Corbyn’s Shadow Chancellor, John McDonnell, has already made public his return.
“I am publishing the detail of my tax return here, on my constituency website.
“I have made it clear that I think it is right for party leaders to be open and transparent about their tax arrangements.
“As you can see, my total income for 2015-16 was £114,342 and I paid £35,298 in tax.”
Hammond told the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show earlier today he has “no intention” of making public his documents since “my tax affairs are all perfectly regular and up to date”.
He added: “This demonstration politics isn’t helping to create a better atmosphere in British politics.”