biography of rishi sunak in english

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Rishi Sunak Biography: Birth, Age, Parents, Education, Political Career, Net Worth, And More

Rishi sunak has become the first indian-origin prime minister of the united kingdom. check rishi sunak's birth, age, wife, education, and other details. .

Rishi Sunak is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He is one of the wealthiest politicians in Westminster, Britain as well as the first leader of colour. He replaced the former PM Liz Truss who only lasted 44 days in the job before she resigned from the position. 

Indian-origin UK politician Rishi Sunak's campaign to be the Prime Minister of Britain after the resignation of Boris Johnson on July 7, 2022, received an endorsement from the Deputy Prime Minister of Britain Dominic Raab and transport minister Grant Shapps, who decided to ditch his own leadership bid to back Sunak. 

Rishi Sunak, the 41-year-old served as the Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2020 to 2022, having previously served as the Chief Secretary to the Treasury from 2019 to 2020. Rishi Sunak is a member of the Conservative Party who has been a Member of Parliament (MP) for Richmond (Yorks) since 2015. 

Rishi Sunak Biography

Rishi sunak biography: birth, age, and parents.

Rishi Sunak was born on 12 May 1980 in Southampton, Hampshire, South East England to Indian parents Yashvir and Usha Sunak who were born in Kenya and Tanzania respectively. His father was a general practitioner while his mother was a pharmacist who ran a local pharmacy. 

Rishi Sunak Education 

Rishi sunak's business career, rishi sunak: as a frontrunner for uk prime minister.

Rishi Sunak, on July 8, 2022, a day after the resignation of former UK PM Boris Johnson, announced that he would stand as a candidate in the Conservative Party Leadership Election to replace Boris Johnson. The conservative politicians who supported Boris Johnson criticized Rishi Sunak as leading the charge in bringing down the Prime Minister. 

Rishi Sunak's Political Career

In 2014, he was chosen as the Conservative candidate for Richmond (Yorks), a seat that had previously been held by William Hague. The seat has been held by the Conservative Party for over 100 years now. That year, he headed the Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Research Unit of Policy Exchange and co-wrote a report on BME communities in the United Kingdom. 

In the 2015 General Election, he was elected as an MP from Richmond (Yorks). From 2015 to 2017, he served as a member of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee. 

He supported the EU referendum in 2016. He also wrote a report for the Centre for Policy Studies supporting the establishment of free ports after Brexit, and the following year wrote a report advocating for the creation of a retail bond market for SMEs. 

He was re-elected as MP from the same seat in the 2017 General Election. He served as the Parliamentary Under-Secretary from January 2018 to July 2019. He supported PM Boris Johnson in the 2019 Conservative Party leadership election and even co-wrote an article in a British national daily to advocate for Johnson during the campaign in June 2019. 

Sunak was re-elected in the 2019 General Election and was appointed Chief Secretary to the Treasury by Prime Minister Boris Johnson in July 2019 and served under Chancellor Sajid Javid. He became a member of the Privy Council on 25 July 2019. 

After a cabinet reshuffle in February 2020, Sunak was promoted to Chancellor of the Exchequer. 

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Sunak presented his first budget on 11 March 2020. As the pandemic created a financial impact, Sunak announced the £30 billion of additional spending of which £12 billion was allocated for mitigation of the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

On 17 March 2020, he announced £330 billion in emergency support for businesses and a salary subsidy scheme for employees. Three days later, he announced the job retention scheme but received severe backlash as an estimated 100,000 people were not eligible for it. The scheme was extended until 30 September 2021. 

Sunak unveiled the £30 billion Eat Out to Help Out Scheme to support and create jobs in the hospitality industry. The government-subsidized food and soft drinks at participating cafes, pubs and restaurants at 50%, up to £10 per person. The offer was available from 3 to 31 August 2020 from Monday to Wednesday. While some consider the scheme to be a success as it subsidized £849 million in meals, others disagree. A study at the University of Warwick revealed that the scheme contributed to a rise in COVID-19 infections of between 8% and 17%. 

In his March 2021 budget, Sunak announced that the deficit had risen to £355 billion in the FY 2020-2021, the highest in peacetime. He increased the corporation tax from earlier 19 to 25% in 2023, a five-year freeze in the tax-free personal allowance and the higher rate income tax threshold. 

At the G7 Summit in June 2021, a tax reform agreement was signed to establish a global minimum tax on multinationals and online technology companies. In October 2021, OECD signed an accord to join the tax reform plan. 

Rishi Sunak Wife 

Non-domiciled status of rishi sunak's wife and green card.

Rishi Sunak's wife Akshata Murthy has non-domiciled status, which means that she is not required to pay tax on the income that she earned abroad while living in the United Kingdom. Murthy pays around 30,000 pounds to secure the particular status, which further allows her to avoid paying an estimated 20 million pounds in UK taxes. 

After the media controversy on the matter which arose during Rishi Sunak's announcement to run for Prime Minister, Akshata Murthy announced on April 8, 2022, that she will pay UK taxes on her global income. She further added that she does not want it to be an issue or a distraction from her husband's plans. 

Reportedly it was also revealed that Rishi Sunak continued to hold the U.S. Permanent Resident Card he had acquired in the 2000s until 2021, including for 18 months after he was Chancellor, which required filling the U.S. Tax returns. 

Also Read | Rakesh Sharma Biography: Birth, Age, Education, Career, Awards and More About Indian Astronaut

Get here current GK and GK quiz questions in English and Hindi for India , World, Sports and Competitive exam preparation. Download the Jagran Josh Current Affairs App .

• Where is Rishi Sunak from originally? + Rishi Sunak was born in Southampton to Indian parents who migrated to Britain from East Africa in the 1960's.
• When was Rishi Sunak born? + Rishi Sunak was born on 12th May 1980 in Southampton.
• How old is Rishi Sunak? + Rishi Sunak is 42 years old.
• What degree does Rishi Sunak have? + He graduated in Politics and Economics from Lincoln College, Oxford and obtained an MBA from Stanford University, where he was a Fulbright scholar.
• Who is the father in law of Rishi Sunak? + Indian billionaire N.R. Narayana Murthy is the father in law of Rishi Sunak.
• Who is Rishi Sunak married to? + Rishi Sunak is married to Akshata Murthy. The couple has two daughters.
• What is the nationality of Rishi Sunak? + The nationality of Rishi Sunak is British.
• Who is Rishi Sunak? + Rishi Sunak is the Chancellor of the Exchequer since February 2020 and MP for Richmond (Yorks) in North Yorkshire since 2015. He is speculated to be the frontrunner for Prime Minister's position.
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The Rt Hon Rishi Sunak MP

Rishi Sunak was Prime Minister between 25 October 2022 and 5 July 2024.

He was previously appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer from 13 February 2020 to 5 July 2022.

He was Chief Secretary to the Treasury from 24 July 2019 to 13 February 2020, and Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government from 9 January 2018 to 24 July 2019.

Rishi went to Winchester College and studied Politics, Philosophy and Economics at Oxford University. He was also a Fulbright Scholar at Stanford University (USA) where he studied for his MBA.

Political career

Rishi was elected Conservative MP for Richmond (Yorks) in May 2015 and served as a Parliamentary Private Secretary at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy from June 2017 until his ministerial appointment.

Career before politics

Rishi spent his professional career before politics in business and finance, working internationally. He co-founded an investment firm working with companies in multiple geographies. He then used that experience to help small and entrepreneurial British companies grow.

Personal life

Rishi is married with two young daughters.

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Rishi Sunak Height, Age, Wife, Children, Family, Biography

Some Lesser Known Facts About Rishi Sunak

Rishi Sunak giving his first speech as the PM of the UK at 10 Downing Street

King Charles III appointed new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at Buckingham Palace on 25 October 2022

• When Rishi Sunak became the Prime Minister of the UK, it was revealed that he was the youngest person to become the British Prime Minister in 200 years of history.
• He was born in a Hindu family, and his grandparents migrated from East Africa to the UK circa 1960, making him a first-generation immigrant in the UK.

It was obviously marvellous. It meant a lot of things to a lot of people. As chancellor, I was able to light my Diwali Diyas (oil lamps) on the steps of Downing Street. It said something wonderful about our country that was possible, but also that it wasn’t a big deal. It was in a sense, gosh, this is great, but also that’s just Britain. Hopefully, it’s a source of collective pride across the country.” [16] India Today jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_276598_1_16').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_276598_1_16', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top right', relative: true, offset: [10, 10], });

A young age image of Rishi Sunak with his mother and siblings

• When he was studying at Winchester College (a boarding school for boys in Winchester, Hampshire), he was chosen as the head boy of the school.
• He met his wife  Akshata Murthy. daughter of Infosys co-founder N. R. Narayana Murthy , in California, while he was pursuing MBA at Stanford University. The duo lived there together for a couple of years before returning to London. Akshata Murthy is a fashion designer and has her own brand label named ‘Akshata Designs.’
• He is also called the ‘Maharaja of the Dales’ because of his money factor.
• Many tabloids and news agencies refer to him as ‘Dishy Rishi’ because of his confidence and charming appearance.
• Sunak is a sports and fitness enthusiast. His favourite football club is “Southampton Football Club,” and Matt le Tissier was his childhood hero. According to sources, it was revealed that when was studying he was studying at Winchester College, he once entered the college with a hidden portable television to watch England play in Euro 96 (Football Championship).

I’m a total Coke addict, Coca-Cola addict to be totally clear. I have seven fillings to show for it.” [17] The Times jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_276598_1_17').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_276598_1_17', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top right', relative: true, offset: [10, 10], });

• Before entering politics, he worked as an analyst for an American multinational investment bank, “Goldman Sachs” in California from 2001 to 2004.
• He began working for Children’s Investment Fund Management, which is a London-based hedge fund management firm. In September 2006, he joined hands with the management firm; however, in November 2009, he quit the firm.
• After quitting Children’s Investment Fund Management, he launched an investment fund, Theleme Partners, in October 2010 in partnership with his former colleagues. The firm was set up with an initial investment of $536 million.
• In 2013, he and his wife, Akshata Murthy, became the director of a large investment company “Catamaran Ventures UK Limited,” owned by his father-in-law N.R. Narayana Murthy. On 30 April 2015, he resigned from the position.
• On October 2014, he began his journey as a politician, when he was chosen to be the Conservative MP candidate for Richmond after the former MP William Hague decided not to contest the general elections. In 2015, he won the UK general election from Richmond with a majority of 19,550 votes.
• Before joining the Conservative Party in the year 2014, he used to volunteer for their election campaigns.
• From 2015 to 2017, he was appointed as a member of the Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs Select Committee.
• In 2016, he campaigned and arranged Q&A sessions to discuss the Brexit referendum with the public. He was in favour of the UK quitting the European Union.
• In 2017, he contested the UK General elections for the second time and was re-elected as the MP of Richmond (Yorks) with an increased majority of 23,108 (40.5%) votes.
• From 9 January 2018 to 24 July 2019, he was appointed as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government.
• On 24 July 2019, he was promoted to the position of Chief Secretary to the Treasury by the former Prime Minister of the UK Borris Johnson .
• After the 2019 general elections, he was re-elected as the MP for Richmond (Yorks) for the third time with an increased majority of 27,210 votes (47.2%).
• On 13 February 2020, Rishi Sunak became Chancellor of the Exchequer (Finance Minister), which is considered to be the second-most powerful political job in Britain. He received this opportunity after the former Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sajid Javid, left the position.

Today we welcomed @RishiSunak as the new Chancellor of the Exchequer. pic.twitter.com/UhCuedAs8d — HM Treasury (@hmtreasury) February 13, 2020

• Rishi Sunak was the first Indian-origin British politician to take charge of Chancellor of the Exchequer. Moreover, he was the UK’s second youngest person to be appointed for this position.
• On 5 July 2022, he tweeted about his resignation as Chancellor of the Exchequer (Finance Minister) mentioning his differences with Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

The public rightly expect government to be conducted properly, competently and seriously. I recognise this may be my last ministerial job, but I believe these standards are worth fighting for and that is why I am resigning. My letter to the Prime Minister below. pic.twitter.com/vZ1APB1ik1 — Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) July 5, 2022

• On 20 July 2022, he was chosen amongst other Conservative MPs to contest the Conservative Party Leadership elections. He contested the elections with foreign secretary Liz Truss . He lost the elections with 42.6% votes, while Liz Truss won the elections with 57.4% votes.
• After Liz Truss stepped down from the position of Prime Minister of the UK after her short tenure of 44 days, Rishi Sunak competed with Penny Mordaunt, Rishi Sunak’s only opponent, who backed out of the race to become the PM of the United Kingdom.
• Rishi Sunak is also a writer and has written many books. In May 2014, he released his first book titled ‘A Portrait of Modern Britain’ in collaboration with Saratha Rajeswaran, which was published by Policy Exchange. In the book, he wrote about Demography, Social Change, and Ethnic Groups in the UK.
• On 14 November 2016, he released his second book ‘The Free Ports Opportunity: How Brexit Could Boost Trade, Manufacturing and the North,’ when he was campaigning in support of Brexit. In the book, he talked about how Brexit can be beneficial for the UK and help in creating new ports and introducing new trade opportunities for Britain.
• In 2017, he released his third book titled ‘A New Era for Retail Bonds: How Our Savings Could Help SMEs Grow’ in which he mentioned the demand for government support to back up and lift up the SMEs (Small and medium-sized enterprises) in the UK by creating a new exchange for SME bonds.

• When he was 18 years old, he worked as a waiter at a curry house in Southampton during his summer holidays, before he studied at Oxford University.

Rishi Sunak in the Star Wars section in a toy shop

Rishi Sunak at 10 Downing Street with his dog, Nova

• Reportedly, he is considered ‘the richest MP’ as he and his wife, Akshata Murty , have a collective net worth of around $810 million.
• The Spectator, a British magazine, gave him the title of ‘Politician of the Year’ after he became the first Indian chancellor of the exchequer.

God, no. Definitely not, seeing what the Prime Minister has to deal with.” [21] History jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_276598_1_21').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_276598_1_21', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top right', relative: true, offset: [10, 10], });

• Rishi Sunak is considered a skilled and impactful public speaker, and this is one of the reasons why he was selected to speak on behalf of the Conservative Party on the airwaves and in debates.

I was just out with my younger brother and younger sister, and I think, probably pretty young, I was probably a mid-teenager, and we were out at a fast-food restaurant and I was just looking after them. There were people sitting nearby, it was the first time I had experienced it, just saying some very unpleasant things. The ‘P’ word. And it stung. I still remember it. It seared in my memory. You can be insulted in many different ways, certainly in this job, but that stings in a way that is hard to explain.” [22] BBC News jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_276598_1_22').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_276598_1_22', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top right', relative: true, offset: [10, 10], });

Of course I have experienced racism, growing up, in particular, and of course I know it exists. It stings you in a way that very few other things do.”

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Early Life and Education

Notable accomplishments, controversies, the bottom line.

• Government & Policy

Who Is Rishi Sunak?

Daniel Liberto is a journalist with over 10 years of experience working with publications such as the Financial Times, The Independent, and Investors Chronicle.

Rishi Sunak is a former investment banker and hedge fund manager turned politician. He was appointed as prime minister of the United Kingdom by his peers in October 2022 after several years of working in finance and then as a Conservative Party member of Parliament and Chancellor of the Exchequer. Sunak became the first non-White person to lead the country and, at age 42, the youngest to take on the role in more than a century.

Like most politicians, Sunak is revered by some and heavily criticized by others. Supporters believe his experience in finance makes him an ideal candidate to steer Britain through one of its most difficult economic moments. On the other hand, critics say he is too rich and out of touch with the electorate and, based on some documented past actions, argue that he is a poster child of inequality.

Key Takeaways

• Rishi Sunak is the prime minister of the United Kingdom and is the country's first non-White leader.
• Sunak was born in Southampton, England, to Indian parents in 1980 and studied at Winchester College, Oxford University, and Stanford University in the United States.
• Sunak turned to politics after a successful career in finance and becoming very rich.

Sunak was born in Southampton, England, in 1980 to parents of Indian descent. His mother and father moved to the U.K. from East Africa in the 1960s and met and married in southern England. The couple had three children—Rishi is the oldest.

Sunak’s father was a doctor, while his mother ran her own pharmacy. Rishi, who later helped his mother with accounting , said it was his parents’ jobs that gave him the desire to serve the public. He credited their sacrifices with getting a top education.

After finishing at the prestigious Winchester College, an expensive private school, Sunak studied philosophy, politics, and economics—a popular choice among future prime ministers—at Lincoln College, Oxford. While there, Sunak interned at the headquarters of the Conservative Party and was president of the Oxford Trading & Investment Society, which teaches students about financial markets and trading.

His passion for investing led to a job as an analyst at Goldman Sachs, where he worked for three years after graduating from Oxford in 2021. Sunak then won a Fulbright scholarship to pursue a master of business administration (MBA) at Stanford University. While in the United States, he met his future wife, Akshata Murthy.

Before his rapid rise up the political ladder, Sunak worked in finance for a number of prestigious companies. These experiences gave him a solid understanding of investing, innovation, and money management, which could come in handy in his role as prime minister, and helped boost his bank balance.

Sunak’s career in finance, and his wife’s stake in Infosys, made him extremely wealthy. According to The Sunday Times , the couple's combined fortune was £529 million as of May 2023. Their net worth dropped by about £201 million from £730 million in 2022 because of a decrease in the value of Infosys.

This wealth is both a blessing and a curse. On one hand, it shone a light on Sunak’s credentials as highly qualified to handle a nation’s finances. On the other hand, it led to accusations that he is unable to relate to the brutal cost-of-living crisis and financial struggles engulfing many people living in the country he is in charge of running.

Sunak’s super-rich status earned him a reputation for being good at managing money. It has also led to accusations that he’s out of touch and incapable of relating to the financial difficulties facing a large portion of the British population.

Sunak began working for the Conservative Party in 2010 and moved quickly up the ranks. In 2015, he was elected to represent Richmond, a town in Yorkshire, England, in Parliament, a seat he continues to hold. He also served in other government positions before landing the big job of Chancellor of the Exchequer in 2020.

As the U.K.’s chief finance minister, Sunak was tasked with steering Britain’s economy through a challenging period of COVID-19 -related shutdowns. He responded by doling out billions of pounds of aid in the form of salary subsidies for workers, business loans, and so on. Those measures came at a huge cost but were generally well-received. Not long after, and following a previous failed attempt, he was selected by his peers to replace Liz Truss as prime minister. It took just seven years for Sunak to rise from being a Member of Parliament to leading the government. He also won plaudits for becoming the first person of color and the first Hindu to lead Britain, and for achieving all these accomplishments at a relatively young age.

Personal Life

Sunak married Akshata Murthy (also spelled Murty) in 2009. She is the daughter of Narayana Murthy , an Indian billionaire and co-founder of technology giant Infosys. At that point, he returned to the U.K. from the United States and was working in the hedge fund industry, first for The Children’s Investment Fund and then for Theleme Partners.

Sunak was part of the Brexit camp that voted for the U.K. to leave the European Union.

Sunak’s reputation has been tarnished somewhat by his past actions. Among other things, he has been accused of being a traitor, greedy, unpatriotic, a tax evader , and flouting the law. Carrying such associations around is far from ideal, especially in the world of politics. The following provides further detail on these labels for Sunak.

One of the most damaging revelations was that Sunak’s wife was using a loophole to avoid paying U.K. taxes on her global income. Murty, it was confirmed, got out of paying taxes on her international earnings by registering as a non-domiciled U.K. resident. That move reportedly saved her millions in tax liabilities and led to a public outcry.

Murty promised to pay taxes on a remittance basis but continues to hold her non-domiciled status. As such, she pays £30,000 per year, which shields her from British taxes on any earnings from overseas sources.

Rich Elitist

Sunak is extremely rich and known to flaunt his wealth by wearing expensive clothes. These observations have led some to question whether he is too out of touch with the average electorate.

Some of the past comments he made haven’t helped. In 2007, Sunak was filmed claiming he does not have working-class friends. He was also caught on camera talking about taking money destined for deprived urban areas and funneling it into wealthier towns instead.

Unpatriotic

People who lead countries are generally supposed to present themselves as patriotic and happy to live there. Sunak made the public question that when it was revealed he held onto a Green Card for U.S. residency. It was reported that he surrendered his Green Card in October 2021 before he made his first trip to the United States as a British government minister.

Ignoring Lockdown Laws

In April 2022, then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson, his wife, and Sunak were fined by the police for attending a party in June 2020 when the country was in a COVID-19-imposed lockdown. There were calls for Johnson and Sunak to resign—primarily from opposition MPs. They apologized but rejected any calls to step down from their positions.

When Boris Johnson, the former prime minister who gave Sunak his big break as chancellor, came under fire for his role in the 2020 “Partygate” scandal and other gaffes, Sunak was one of the politicians who turned against him. Then, to add salt to the wound, as soon as Johnson resigned, Sunak put his name forward to replace him.

Where Is Rishi Sunak From?

Rishi Sunak was born in Southampton, England. His grandparents emigrated from Punjab, India, to East Africa, and his mother and father moved to England in the 1960s.

What Is Rishi Sunak's Role?

Rishi Sunak is the prime minister of the United Kingdom. He assumed office on Oct. 25, 2022. At age 42, he was the youngest person to take on the role in more than a century. He's also the first non-White individual to lead the U.K.

Prior to this, Sunak was the Chancellor of the Exchequer between February 2020 and July 2022. He held a number of positions within the British government before 2020, including Chief Secretary to the Treasury.

What Is Rishi Sunak's Net Worth?

Rishi Sunak is considerably wealthy. His early career in finance along with his wife's stake in Infosys (her father's company) helped the two amass a sizeable fortune. As of May 2023, their net worth was about £529 million.

Rishi Sunak made headlines a lot in the past few years. His speedy rise to the top of British politics at a young age earned him plaudits, as has his experience in the finance world. Sunak also broke down barriers by becoming the first non-White leader of one the world’s largest economies.

But the news flow hasn’t all been good, though. Sunak happens to have a few skeletons in his closet that opposition politicians use as ammunition. He also finds himself in the hot seat in a difficult period. The party he leads has been in power for more than a decade and, after several enforced leadership changes, is no longer popular.  And the country he is responsible for running is in the midst of a deepening economic crisis.

The New York Times. “ Rishi Sunak Is the Youngest British Prime Minister of Modern Times. ”

YouGov. “ As He Becomes P.M., What Do People Think of Rishi Sunak? ”

Tatler. “ Inside the World of Rishi Sunak, Our New Prime Minister .”

Encyclopœdia Britannica. “ Rishi Sunak .”

RishiSunak.com. “ About Me .”

Bloomberg. “ Hedge Funds Get Their First Prime Minister in U.K.’s Rishi Sunak .”

The Sunday Times. " The Sunday Times Rich List 2023 ."

The Guardian. " Rishi Sunak’s family fortune falls by £200m in Sunday Times rich list ."

Gov.UK. “ The Rt. Hon. Rishi Sunak M.P. ”

Financial Times. “ The Coronavirus Chancellor: How Rishi Sunak Took Centre Stage .”

Gov.UK. “ Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak on COVID-19 Response .”

The Washington Post. “ Rishi Sunak and the Curious Arc of History .”

The Guardian. “ Akshata Murty May Have Avoided up to £20m in Tax with Non-Dom Status .”

The Guardian. " Akshata Murty to get almost £6.7m in Infosys dividends ."

The Independent, via YouTube. “ Resurfaced Clip Captures Rishi Sunak Suggesting He Doesn’t Have ‘Working Class’ Friends .”

The Guardian. “ Rishi Sunak Admits Taking Money from Deprived Areas .”

Financial Times. “ U.K. Chancellor Invites Government to Review His Interests .”

BBC News. " Chancellor Rishi Sunak held US green card until last year ."

Financial Times. “ Boris Johnson, Wife Carrie, and Rishi Sunak Fined Over Covid Lockdown Breaches .”

BBC News. " Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak reject calls to resign over lockdown fines ."

Axios. “ How It All Fell Apart for Boris Johnson .”

YouGov. “ Voting Intention: Con 23%, Lab 51% (25–26 Oct. 2022) .”

The Wall Street Journal. “ Britain’s Financial Disaster Is a Warning to the World .”

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• Conservative Leadership
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Sunak, Rishi

Variously described as ‘Dishy Rishi’, ‘Britain’s economic Jedi’, Rishi Sunak became leader of the Conservative Party and the UK’s 57th prime minister in October 2022.

In doing so, Sunak became the second youngest ever UK prime minister.  He is a year younger than Tony Blair and David Cameron, both of whom entered Downing Street at the age of 43. Only William Pitt the Younger, who became prime minister at the age of 24 back in 1783, was younger than Sunak.

Sunak also became the UK’s first ever non-white prime minister.  He is the first practising Hindu to become prime minister.  He is shortest male prime minister since Winston Churchill.

In 2020, Sunak was voted Britain’s sexiest MP, narrowly pipping Sir Keir Starmer to the post.

Sunak doesn’t drink alcohol.  It has been reported that he often starts his day at 6am with a session on his ‘Peleton’ exercise bike listening to songs by Britney Spears.  Mr Sunak, who is also known for his sweet tooth and love of coca cola, is then said to follow up with a Greek yoghurt for breakfast.

Sunak was first elected as the Conservative MP for Richmond, North Yorkshire, in 2015. He was reelected in 2019 with a majority of 27,210.

Sunak served as Chancellor of the Exchequer between February 2020 and July 2022, having first entered the Cabinet in 2019 as Chief Secretary to the Treasury. He resigned in July 2022 citing economic differences with the prime minister, alongside concerns around the way government was being conducted under Boris Johnson.

Sunak was the runner up to Liz Truss in the 2022 Conservative leadership election.  Although he topped the ballot amongst Conservative MPs, he lacked the same support from party members.  Sunak was previously defeated by then foreign secretary, Liz Truss, polling 43% to Truss’ 57%..

Chancellor of the Exchequer

On 13 February 2020, Sajid Javid resigned as Chancellor following a proposed Dominic Cummings-led, Downing Street-endorsed take-over of the Treasury.

Johnson, then under the spell of Cummings, had intended to replace all of Javid’s advisors with individuals hand-picked by Cummings. Javid resigned in protest. Sunak was picked to replace him.

This appointment coincided with the beginnings of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has thus far defined Sunak’s tenure at the Treasury. The pressure of the pandemic and Sunak’s subsequent stardom have increased his public and media profile considerably.

Sunak’s first budget took place on 11th March 2020, this included £30 billion of additional spending – £12 billion of which was allocated for mitigation of the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

On 17th March, Sunak announced a £330 billion emergency ‘furlough’ scheme to support businesses and employees impacted by the pandemic. These furlough payments have been extended and reintroduced several times throughout Britain’s 3 lockdowns.

The government’s ‘Eat Out to Help Out’ scheme – which subsidised food and soft drinks at participating cafes, pubs and restaurants at 50%, up to £10 per person – gave Sunak another opportunity to increase his profile. The carefully managed marketing of the campaign featured Sunak front-and-centre. In total, the scheme subsidised £849 million in meals.

In 2022 Rishi Sunak’s popularity as Chancellor was seen to take a significant hit.  In the face of a cost of living crisis, the Chancellor came under criticism in relation to his wife’s tax affairs and the fact that he had only recently given up his own American ‘green card’ visa.

In April 2022, Mr Sunak was also issued with a fixed penalty notice for attending a lockdown gathering in the Cabinet Office with the prime minister.  He resigned from the government in July 2022.

Political Career

Sunak was first elected for William Hague’s old seat of Richmond at the 2015 General Election.

During the 2015–2017 parliament he was a member of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee.

Sunak backed the ‘Leave’ campaign in the 2016 Brexit referendum, saying it would make Britain ‘freer, fairer and more prosperous’.

Re-elected with an increased majority at the 2017 General Election, he was appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Local Government in 2018. Sunak voted for Theresa May’s Brexit deal on all three occasions.

During the 2019 Conservative leadership contest, Sunak co-wrote the article ‘The Tories are in deep peril. Only Boris Johnson can save us’ with fellow Tory MPs, Oliver Dowden and Robert Jenrick. All three individuals were subsequently rewarded with senior government posts by the new Tory Prime Minister. Sunak became Chief Secretary to the Treasury.

During the 2019 General Election campaign, Sunak represented the Conservative party in both the BBC and ITV’s election debates.

Before Politics

Sunak studied at the independent Winchester College where he was Head Boy. He later studied at the University of Oxford and undertook an MBA at Stanford University.

After graduating, Sunak worked as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs, and later as a partner in a hedge fund. Sunak was also a director of investment firm Catamaran Ventures, owned by his father-in-law, Indian businessman N. R. Narayana Murthy.

Personal Life

Sunak’s parents came to the UK from east Africa and are both of Indian origin. His father was a GP and his mother ran her own local chemist shop.  He grew up in Southampton and is a fan of Southampton Football Club.

While studying for an MBA at Stanford University, Sunak met his future wife, Akshata Murthy , the daughter of Narayana Murthy, Indian billionaire and co-founder of IT services giant Infosys.

Thanks to Murty’s wealth, in May 2022, Mr and Mrs Sunak were ranked as the 222nd richest people in the UK. The couple were estimated to have a fortune of some £730 milion.

Murthy and Sunak were married at a two-day traditional wedding ceremony in 2009, in Bangalore. The couple have two daughters.

Unlike most politicians, ‘Brand Rishi’ has embraced Instagram.  In the spring of 2022, the then Chancellor had over 158,000 followers.

Who is the next Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak?

Further Details

Twitter — @RishiSunak

Instagram – rishisunakmp

Facebook — https://www.facebook.com/rishisunak

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