United Kingdom: a minister sacked because of his tax problems

Nadhim Zahawi, then British minister without portfolio, photographed in Downing Street, London, January 17, 2023. AP - Kirsty Wigglesworth

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1 min

The British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, dismisses one of his ministers, Nadhim Zahawi, because of his tax troubles.

A decision taken for the example, in a context unfavorable to the conservatives, whose reputation is marred by cases of conflicts of interest.

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With our correspondent in London,

A " 

".

This is the reason given by the British Prime Minister who sacked the president of the Conservative Party and minister without portfolio Nadhim Zahawi on Sunday January 29.

Last Monday, Rishi Sunak called for an independent investigation to assess Mr. Zahawi's tax behavior.

In particular on the sale of its shares in the YouGov polling institute and, according to the BBC, on the penalties of five million pounds sterling (5.7 million euros) for not having correctly declared its income.

The result: negligence and a lack of fiscal transparency cost him his government jobs.

Rishi Sunak dismisses his minister rather than asking him to resign.

He wants to give an image of firmness, since since he came to power almost 100 days ago, he has been criticized by the opposition for his " 

" in the face of endless strike movements and inflation that exceeds 10% .

But it is also a message of " 

 " and " 

 " for the head of government, who had himself found himself at the heart of several controversies, concerning the privileged tax status of his wife or for having attended a party hosted during lockdown by then Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

►Also read: United Kingdom: Rishi Sunak's government wants to bring investors back

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