LONDON — British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak fired Nadhim Zahawi, the chairman of the Conservative Party, citing “serious” breaches of ethics rules after revelations about Zahawi's tax affairs made his position untenable.
In a letter to Zahawi on Sunday, Sunak said that the independent review of the matter had been concluded and “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.”
Zahawi had acknowledged he’d been “careless” with his taxes and had settled a retroactive multimillion-pound bill with the country’s tax collector. That and the revelation that he’d also incurred a tax penalty for not paying the right amount at the correct time led to mounting pressure from within his own party for him to quit, or for Sunak to fire him.
