Tories took £5m from Hester days before election called

The Conservative Party accepted a further £5m donation from the businessman Frank Hester days before the general election was called in May.

The donation was taken two months after he was accused of making racist comments about the Labour MP Diane Abbott.

In March, claims emerged that Mr Hester had told staff at a meeting in 2019 that Ms Abbott made him "want to hate all black women" and "should be shot".

At the time, the then Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the comments were "racist" and "wrong" but made it clear that the party would not return Mr Hester’s money.

Electoral Commission records, published this week, show that the party accepted the sum from Mr Hester's Leeds-based healthcare software company, The Phoenix Partnership (TPP), on 17 May.

There is a three-month lag before donations are made public by the commission.

The £5m donation in May follows £150,000 from Mr Hester accepted in March, £5m in January and £10m donated to the party last year.

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

The Conservative Party has been approached for comment.