Nadhim Zahawi sacked from UK government after tax row

BBC Summary

Rishi Sunak dismisses Conservative Party chair Nadhim Zahawi following weeks of revelations about his tax affairs.

The prime minister says it is "clear that there has been a serious breach of the Ministerial Code".

Mr Zahawi was under pressure to fully explain a multi-million pound settlement he paid to HMRC.

But the prime minister also faces questions about how much he knew about the issue when he appointed the Tory party chair.

Here’s a quick look at the life of the now-former Tory chairman:

Zahawi was born in Iraq to a Kurdish family. They fled the country for the UK in the early years of Saddam Hussein's regime

After studying chemical engineering at University College London, he went into business and in 2000 co-founded polling company YouGov

He has represented the constituency of Stratford-on-Avon since 2010, and became well-known during the coronavirus pandemic as the minister who oversaw the first vaccine rollout- a project widely judged to have been a success

In September 2021 he became the education secretary in a cabinet reshuffle

And he replaced Rishi Sunak as chancellor, in July 2022, after Sunak resigned and called onBoris Johnson to stand down as PM. But - just two days into the job - Zahawi joined those publicly urging Johnson to go

Zahawi ran for the Tory leadership following Johnson’s downfall, but was eliminated early on

He remained as chancellor for only nine weeks before Liz Truss’s eventual victory in the contest

Truss gave him a number of junior ministerial roles. Aftershe was ousted as PM amid economic turmoil, and replaced by Sunak, Zahawi was made party chairman in October 2022

Full text of PM's letter sacking Zahawi

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has sacked Tory party chairman Nadhim Zahawi, who was under pressure over his tax affairs.

Read the full text of the letter below.

Dear Nadhim,

When I became Prime Minister last year, I pledged that the Government I lead would have integrity, professionalism and accountability at every level. That is why, following new information which came to light in recent days regarding your personal financial arrangements and declarations, I asked Sir Laurie Magnus, the Independent Adviser on Ministers' Interests, to fully investigate this matter. You agreed and undertook to cooperate fully with the inquiry Following the completion of the Independent Adviser's investigation - the findings of which he has shared with us both - it is clear that there has been a serious breach of the Ministerial Code. As a result, I have informed you of my decision to remove you from your position in His Majesty's Government. As you leave, you should be extremely proud of your wide-ranging achievements in government over the last five years. In particular, your successful oversight of the COVID-19 vaccine procurement and deployment programme which ensured the United Kingdom was at the forefront of the global response to the coronavirus pandemic. Your role was critical to ensuring our country came through this crisis and saved many lives. And as the Conservative Party Chairman, you have undertaken significant restructuring to Conservative Campaign Headquarters and readied us for important work in the coming months. It is also with pride that I, and previous prime ministers, have been able to draw upon the services of a Kurdish-born Iraqi refugee at the highest levels of the UK government. That is something which people up and down this country have rightly valued. I know I will be able to count on your support from the backbenches as you continue to passionately and determinedly serve your constituents of Stratford-on-Avon and represent the many issues and campaigns you are dedicated to. Thank you for your service to this and previous governments. Yours sincerely,

Rishi Sunak