UK PM Sunak sacks Tory party chief over tax penalty row

London: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Sunday sacked one of his Cabinet ministers and Conservative Party chairman, Nadhim Zahawi, after he was found to have been in serious breach of the Ministerial Code.

Zahawi, who was a minister without portfolio as the chief of the governing Tory party, had faced fierce pressure in recent days to quit over questions about his finances after it emerged that he had agreed a penalty settlement with His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) department.

Sunak had ordered an independent investigation into the Iraqi-born former Chancellor’s tax affairs amid growing Opposition demands for him to sack Zahawi. His independent ethics adviser, Sir Laurie Magnus, submitted his assessment on whether the HMRC settlement amounted to a breach of the ministerial code.

“When I became Prime Minister last year, I pledged that the government I lead would have integrity, professionalism and accountability at every level,” writes Sunak in his letter to Zahawi, released by Downing Street.

“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,” he said.

He added that Zahawi should be “extremely proud” of his “wide-ranging achievements in government over the last five years”, particularly crediting his “successful oversight of the COVID-19 vaccine procurement and deployment programme”.

In the correspondence to Sunak, also released by Downing Street, Magnus said his overall judgement was that “Mr Zahawi’s conduct as a minister has fallen below the high standards that, as Prime Minister, you rightly expect from those who serve in your government”.

Earlier this week, Zahawi said he welcomed the investigation and looked forward to “explaining the facts of this issue” to Magnus the UK Prime Minister’s Independent Adviser on Ministers’ Interests.

“In order to ensure the independence of this process, you will understand that it would be inappropriate to discuss this issue any further, as I continue my duties as chairman of the Conservative and Unionist Party,” Zahawi said at the time. The minister has insisted he “acted properly throughout” and any tax error was due to being “careless” and not deliberate.