Tories given £5m more by Hester before Abbott row

The Conservative Party accepted a £5m donation from the company of Frank Hester in January, before he became embroiled in a row over alleged racist comments, new figures disclose.

On 10 January the Conservatives received £5m from The Phoenix Partnership, the healthcare software company Mr Hester runs, according to the Electoral Commission.

Mr Hester previously made £10m of donations to the Conservatives last year.

In March – after the latest £5m was donated but before it was known about – the tech boss was thrust to the centre of a political controversy after claims he made comments to staff saying that Labour politician Diane Abbott “should be shot”.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak eventually condemned the alleged comments as “wrong” and “racist” but refused to return the money, saying Mr Hester’s “remorse should be accepted”.

Mr Hester apologised for making "rude" comments about Ms Abbott but said his remarks "had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin".