Nadhim Zahawi, chairman of the Conservative Party has been under fire for his personal tax arrangements and on Sunday, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak bowed to pressure and fired him.
As of last week, Sunak had his ethics adviser look into the claims that Zahawi had paid a penalty as part of a £4.8 million ($5.96 million) settlement with tax officials. Zahawi allegedly did not report the disagreement to the tax authorities.
Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson appointed Zahawi to the position of Chancellor of the Exchequer in July of last year. After Johnson’s term ended, he remained in the Cabinet under Liz Truss and then Sunak who promoted him to party chairman.
Upon the completion of the investigation, Sunak wrote to Zahawi, “it is clear that there has been a serious breach of the Ministerial Code.” Therefore, I have decided to dismiss you from your position in the Government of His Majesty.
Many Britons are struggling to make ends meet in the midst of the cost-of-living crisis, so news of Zahawi’s multi-million-pound settlement with tax officials came as a shock. Bridget Phillipson, a senior member of the Labour Parliament, told Sky News that the scandal showed Sunak to be a weak leader.
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She said, The stench of sleaze just hangs around the Conservative party. Even though Sunak’s wife, the daughter of an Indian billionaire is under scrutiny for their tax arrangements, Sunak’s own finances have come under scrutiny.
A year ago it came to light that Murty had non-domicile status in the UK which allowed her to legally avoid paying UK taxes on her foreign earnings from her family’s Infosys business group.
Zahawi wrote an open letter to the British public on Sunday in response to his dismissal, in which he reflected on his time in office and expressed gratitude for the opportunity. When asked about the results of the ethics investigation into his tax returns, he avoided answering directly.
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