Rishi Sunak: Economist outlines 'positives' of his fiscal policy
We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info
Rishi Sunak could be the UK’s next Prime Minister as he currently has the most declared backers among Conservative MPs. Mr Sunak is now the firm favourite to replace Ms Truss as PM after Boris Johnson announced he was not standing. The former Chancellor has an estimated net worth of over £730million and is known to have multiple lavish properties across the world.
How rich is Rishi Sunak?
Earlier this year, the Sunaks found themselves at number 222 on the Sunday Times rankings of Britain’s 1,000 richest people.
The pair have a joint £730million fortune, according to the annual list.
Mr Sunak was the first ever cabinet minister to appear on the list, which drew significant ire from the public and some politicians, given his former role as Chancellor of the Exchequer.
How did Rishi Sunak get rich?
Rishi Sunak enjoys huge wealth thanks to his wife, Akshata Murry, having a stake in IT giant Infosys.
The Indian tech company was founded by N.R. Narayana Murthy, his wife’s billionaire father.
But despite his vast riches, Mr Sunak has continued to insist he is just like everyone else throughout his leadership campaign.
Mr Sunak has also worked as a banker for Goldman Sachs and as a partner at a hedge fund firm.
The pair live a lavish lifestyle in comparison to most Britons; the couple’s property portfolio includes a Kensington mews house, a west London flat, a manor house in Yorkshire, and a California penthouse, all of which are worth millions.
Rishi Sunak currently resides in his £6.6million mews mansion in Kensington, west London, with his wife and two daughters.
In addition to their spacious central London home, Rishi also owns a first-floor flat in Old Brompton Road, Kensington, which is said to act as a holiday home for visiting relatives.
The family also have a remote country abode in the Yorkshire village of Kirby Sigston, valued at £1.5million The Yorkshire home and Californian abode are said to be under Akshata’s name while Rishi officially owns the London properties.
The Yorkshire MP has said he is not “too rich” to become Prime Minister, saying his wealth doesn’t make him out of touch with ordinary people.
He said: “As a Conservative is I believe in hard work and aspiration and that’s my story and if I’m prime minister then I’ll be making the case for that with vigour. I don’t judge people by their bank accounts, I judge them by their character and I think people can judge me by my actions over the past couple of years.”
As Chancellor, Mr Sunak came under scrutiny for his wife’s tax affairs after it was revealed she benefitted from non-domicile tax status.
It was estimated Ms Murty had saved around £20million in taxes by using the status. After a furious political row, Ms Murty agreed to pay UK tax on her worldwide income, including dividends and capital gains, saying she did not want her tax status “to be a distraction for my husband”.
In the wake of that revelation, it emerged Mr Sunak had held a US green card, meaning he declared himself a “permanent US resident” for tax purposes for 19 months while he was Chancellor and for six years as a member of the Commons.
Mr Sunak was also slammed for reducing the pandemic uplift of £20 a week for those on Universal Credit, and again for raising National Insurance by 1.25 percentage points.
In September, Rishi Sunak lost after campaigning for the role of PM against his rival, Liz Truss, who was 45 days in office, making her the shortest-serving Prime Minister in the history of the United Kingdom.
Source: Read Full Article
