The former Education Secretary and Vaccines Secretary, who is running for Boris Johnson’s job, told Sky News he has “always” paid his taxes and “declared” them in the UK. If he becomes prime minister he will publish his accounts annually, he pledged. According to The Observer newspaper, a “flag” was raised by officials before Mr Zahawi became chancellor on Tuesday. The 55-year-old replaced Rishi Sunak, who had resigned earlier in the afternoon and argued in his resignation letter that Johnson’s administration had not been run “properly, competently and seriously”. Civil servants in the Cabinet Office’s fitness and ethics team alerted the prime minister to a HM Revenue and Customs “flag” over Mr Zahawi before his appointment, the Observer reported. Mr Johnson continued with the appointment “despite potential concerns about his tax affairs”, it added. A source told the newspaper that such matters could “prevent someone from receiving an MBE or OBE” and that “the idea that he could be chancellor or even prime minister is unbelievable”. Another report, in The Independent newspaper, said Mr Zahawi’s finances were “secretly investigated” by the National Crime Agency. The investigation led to no action and there was no suggestion of wrongdoing. Image: Mr Zahawi told Sky News he was ‘being beaten’ Speaking to Sky News presenter Kay Burley, Mr Zahawi said he was unaware of the allegations. “So I was clearly being smeared. They were telling me that the Serious Fraud Office, the National Crime Agency, HMRC were looking into me,” he said. “I was not aware of this, I have always paid my taxes, I have declared my taxes in the UK.” Referring to a possible investigation, Mr Zahawi added: “I will answer any questions HMRC have about me. “But I will go further: I will commit today that if I am prime minister I will publish my accounts annually.” Mr Zahawi, who founded polling firm YouGov, is said to be worth more than £100m. He is one of nine Conservative MPs who have declared they are running for the party leadership so far. Born in Iraq, he said he “came here at age 11 without a word of English.” On his initial bid to become prime minister he added: “The Conservative Party made me who I am today. “It gave me an education, it gave my family a home and, most importantly, it gave hope.” He promises tax cuts and education reforms if they succeed. Watch Nadhim Zahawi’s full interview with Kay Burley at 7am on Monday