London Mayor Boris Johnson agrees to pay US tax bill

London Mayor Boris Johnson has settled a US tax bill he had previously described as "absolutely outrageous".

Mr Johnson, who has dual nationality, faced a demand from the US authorities to pay capital gains tax on profit from the sale of his house in North London.

American law requires all citizens to pay US taxes even if they live abroad.

The mayor, who is due to visit Boston, New York and Washington next month, had rejected the demand, saying he had not lived in the US since he was a child.

Mr Johnson, who was born in New York, revealed last year he had received a bill from the US Internal Revenue Service. Unlike the UK, the US levies capital gains tax on proceeds from the sale of a main residence.

Asked whether he would pay the demand, Mr Johnson said then: "No is the answer. I think it's absolutely outrageous. Why should I? I haven't lived in the United States since I was five years old."

A spokesman for Mr Johnson said: "The mayor won't be saying anything more on the subject. The matter has been dealt with."

The Financial Times reports, on the size of the tax bill, that the mayor's "allies say it is nowhere near the £100,000 estimated by some tax experts".

The newspaper also says a house Mr Johnson used to live in was bought for £470,000 in March 1999 and sold for £1.2m in May 2009.