Rishi Sunak | New Prime Minister of United Kingdom is unstoppable

Who is Rishi Sunak?

Rishi Sunak, 42-year-old son of Indian immigrants, UK’s first British Asian prime minister and the youngest for more than 200 years. He went on to become Prime Minister of UK on 25^th October, 2022, when Liz Truss resigned from UK PM position after facing backlashes for her party policies in 45 days, since she was appointed.

He won this Tory leadership contest after his rival Penny Mordaunt failed to secure enough supports from the MPs. After Liz Truss – tax-cutting agenda Mr. Sunak marked and predicted it as “fairy-tale economics” and her plan to borrow money during an inflation crisis would only lead the UK economy into chaos. Later Liz Truss most of the mini-budget, were scrapped.

Let’s get to know about Rishi Sunak life, UK New PM, He is already becoming everyone’s favorite leader;

Place of birth : Southampton to parents of Indian descent who migrated to Britain from East Africa in the year 1960s

Home : London and Yorkshire

Education : Winchester College, Oxford University, Stanford University

Family : Married to businesswoman Akshata Murty with two daughters

Parliamentary constituency : Richmond (Yorkshire)

He was born on 12 May 1980 in Southampton General Hospital in Southampton, Hampshire, to Southeast African-born Hindu parents of Indian Punjabi descent, Yashvir and Usha Sunak. His grandparents migrated with their families to the United Kingdom in the 1960s. Rishi Sunak is the eldest of three siblings. Sanjay, his brother (born 1982), is a psychologist and Raakhi Williams his sister (born 1985), works in New York as the chief of strategy and planning at the United Nations global fund for education in emergencies.

Rishi Sunak Political Career Brief;

• Sunak is a British politician who is appointed as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom since 25 October 2022 and Conservative Party Leader since 24 October 2022. Sunak was Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2020 to 2022 and Chief Secretary to the Treasury from 2019 to 2020. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Richmond (Yorks) since 2015.

• Rishi Sunak studied philosophy, politics and economics (PPE) at Lincoln College, Oxford, and received MBA degree from Stanford University as a Fulbright Scholar. He met his future wife Akshata Murty, the daughter of Indian billionaire N. R. Narayana Murthy of Infosys in Stanford University.
• Sunak was selected as the Conservative candidate for Richmond (Yorks) in October 2014, defeating Wendy Morton. As Chancellor, Rishi Sunak was prominent and very active in the government’s financial response to the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impact, including the Coronavirus Job Retention and Eat Out to Help Out schemes. He became a member of the Privy Council the next day. Sunak was re-elected in the 2019 general election with an increased majority of 27,210 (47.2%). During the election campaign, Sunak represented the Conservatives in both BBC’s and ITV’s seven-way election debates.
• Rishi resigned as chancellor in July 2022, after Johnson’s resignation, to stand as contender of Prime Minister in United Kingdom elections for the Conservative party leadership election. Sunak had the required number of supporters—100 members of the House of Commons—to run in the ballot on 24 October. Many were ready to support #Ready4Rishi”. The total number of MPs who publicly declared support were more than100. On 23 October, Sunak declared that he would stand for election.  After his win he was appointed Prime Minister by King Charles III, becoming the first British Asian, Hindu, and non-white person to take this high ranked position in UK.
• Sunak gave his first speech as prime minister in front of 10 Downing Street. Later Rishi Sunak appointed Dominic Raab as Deputy Prime Minister, Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor. Rishi Sunak reappointed Jeremy Hunt as Chancellor of the Exchequer, appointed James Cleverly as Foreign Secretary, and Ben Wallace as Secretary of State for Defense. He also appointed Nadhim Zahawi as Chairman of the Conservative Party. Sunak controversially appointed Suella Braverman as Home Secretary. Suella Braverman was appointed despite an alleged security breach when Braverman shared secure information with a colleague, she had also proposed some Anti- Immigrants and Anti- Indian Policies for stabilizing UK economy crisis, while Liz Truss government was in power. She faced lots of criticism.

Facts about Rishi Sunak Political Career and Life: –

• On March 11, 2020, Rishi Sunak first budget was presented, which included £30 billion in additional spending, £12 billion of which was designated for mitigating the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in UK.

• As a result of the financial consequences of the pandemic, Chancellor Sunak’s mitigation plans were criticized, as many workers were failed to qualify for the Treasury’s income support measures. According to the Institute for Employment Studies, 100,000 people may be ineligible for government assistance because they started a new job too late to be included in the job retention scheme and the British Hospitality Association stated the Treasury Select Committee that between 350,000 and 500,000 workers in its sector were not eligible for this scheme.

• Rishi Sunak launched a program providing £330 billion as an emergency support for businesses, as well as a temporary furlough scheme for employees, on March 17, 2020, and launched on 20^th March, 2020, which was the first time such step was taken by British government to implement an employee retention program, with allocation to employers of up to £2,500 per person per month to cover 80% of a staff wage and employment costs. The monthly operating costs are estimated around £14 billion. The program was further extended until 30 September 2021 and the decision was made to extend the job retention scheme to avoid or reduce mass dismissals, company bankruptcies and potential unemployment

• In June 2020, fraudulent Bounce Back Loans were investigated which was highlighted to Sunak by David Clarke, chair of the Fraud Advisory Panel charity and few top white-collar crime experts. Sunak also initiated Raising future find to support mainly early-stage companies at the height of the coronavirus pandemic.

• Sunak announced a £30 billion spending plan in July, which included a stamp duty holiday, a reduction in value-added tax (VAT) for the hospitality sector, a job retention bonus for employers, and the Eat Out to Help Out scheme, which aimed to support and create jobs in the hospitality industry. Food and soft drinks at participating cafes, restaurants, pubs were 50% subsidized, up to £10 per person. Not just it boosted hospitality sector but is also said to have contributed to a rise in COVID-19 infections of between 8% and 17%.

• March, 2021 Budget was officially called as protecting the job and livelihood of British people. The budget proposed raising the corporation tax rate from 19% to 25% in 2023, as well as freezing the tax-free personal allowance and the higher rate income tax range/threshold for five years.

• October 2021 United Kingdom budget officially called as Autumn Budget spending review to extend support related to science and education.  While covid recovery was ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine started. So Sunak decided to cut fuel duty, removed VAT on energy saving equipment (such as solar panels and insulation) and reduced national insurance payments for small businesses. Sunak also provided some funding to help vulnerable people cope with the rising cost of living and also promised to reduce income tax in 2024.

• Rishi Sunak On LGBT rights, in July 2022 during a debate, said that he wanted the UK to be “the safest and greatest country in the world to be LGBT+” and believes transgender people should be respected.

• Sunak has already stated his support for lowering UK net migration, as he is committed to ensure that UK has the control over its borders and control immigration and illegal stays.

• Sunak is a devout Hindu and he took his oath on the Bhagwat Gita in 2015 and having estimated net worth more than estimated net worth approx. $830 million.

• Sunak worked as an analyst for the investment banking firm Goldman Sachs from 2001 to 2004 before entering politics. Later his business career spanned over a decade and also co-founded Theleme Partners, a hedge fund firm, in 2009.

• Rishi and his wife Akshata faced criticism in April 2022 when it was revealed that Akshata was using her Indian citizenship to avoid paying taxes in the UK.

• While Sunak favorite player was Matt Le Tissier and is known to be a one of the biggest fan of his hometown football club, Southampton.

What’s coming next for Rishi and what are his plan for United Kingdom future?

• UK is currently facing deadly recession and rising interest rates. The Bank of England is trying to control double-digit inflation while consumers face rising costs, falling real incomes and real estate values.
• UK will now have to restore this credibility in international financial market after Liz Truss unplanned policies.
• Sunak will also have to take care of raising fuel prices, raised cost of household items due to inflation, stretched public finances, industrial unrest and party politics.
• Sunak seemed to be clear about UK economics crisis as he said “Right now, our country is facing a profound economic crisis,” outside Downing Street. He also added “I will place economic stability and confidence at the heart of this government’s agenda. This will mean difficult decisions to come.”
• U.K is facing a labor crisis and continued industrial unrest, with widespread strikes among postal workers, rail workers and public barristers.
• UK inflation has returned to be highest in 40 years with 10.1 % high in September and continued energy prices getting higher following Russia’s war in Ukraine with possible blackouts in winter.
• UK companies now struggles to make money, they have reported lower earnings, shook investor confidence and led to further pain in the stock market.
• Sunak will have to show his ability to restore his party and unite them under his new economic and political vision for betterment of UK.
• Rishi Sunak, former Goldman Sachs analyst, on several occasions has expressed a positive attitude toward crypto. As the minister in charge of Britain’s finances, he showered a grand plan to make the country a global crypto hub by April.
• Sunak clarified that he would only cut taxes once soaring inflation had been controlled. He outlined a plan to cut income tax from 20% to 16% by 2029 and higher public spending’s.

So, now UK, its immigrants and the whole world is waiting to witness the changes in economic reforms, financial conditions ways to tame inflation to be taken by UK government, led by Rishi Sunak.