Rishi Sunak

After leaving Downing Street, Sunak accepted several outside roles, including a senior adviser position at Goldman Sachs in July 2025 and advisory roles with Microsoft and Anthropic. He remains an MP. In 2026, the Financial Times estimated his declared earnings at approximately £1.1 million from Goldman Sachs and around £370,000 in shares from the technology roles, reigniting debate about MPs' paid consultancy work.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

The UK Supreme Court ruled that the scheme allowing certain asylum seekers to be sent to Rwanda was unlawful because of a real risk that they could subsequently be returned to countries where they might face persecution. Sunak responded by negotiating a new treaty and securing legislation declaring Rwanda a safe country, a strategy strongly contested on rule-of-law and international obligations grounds.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Political responsibility

Sunak left the international commemorations of the 80th anniversary of the Normandy landings early to return to the United Kingdom to record a campaign interview, leaving the Foreign Secretary to represent the country during part of the ceremonies alongside allied leaders. The incident prompted widespread outrage during the election campaign.

State of the evidence

Admitted by the person

Attribution

Personally implicated

Weeks before the election, the Gambling Commission and police investigated several Conservative candidates, officials and police officers suspected of betting on the election date before it was announced. Craig Williams, a close aide to Sunak, had placed a £100 bet. The Conservatives ultimately withdrew their support from Williams and Laura Saunders.

Attribution

Political responsibility

Role of the person profiled

Protagonist not prosecuted

Sunak designed the 'Eat Out to Help Out' scheme, which subsidised restaurant meals to support the hospitality sector during the summer 2020 reopening. At the COVID inquiry, he confirmed that Chris Whitty and Patrick Vallance had not been specifically consulted before the announcement. Vallance considered it highly likely that the scheme had caused additional infections, while Whitty had nicknamed it 'eat out to help out the virus'.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Political responsibility

Before the COVID inquiry, Sunak confirmed that he no longer had his WhatsApp messages from the relevant period because he had changed phones several times and had not backed up his messages. Their absence fuelled criticism of government communication record-keeping during the crisis.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Protagonist is a witness

A video released by Downing Street showed Sunak without a seat belt in the back of a moving car while speaking to the camera. Lancashire Police issued him with a fixed penalty notice.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards concluded that Sunak should have declared his wife's stake in Koru Kids during a hearing on public childcare support, since an announced measure could benefit agencies such as that company. The matter was resolved by correction. The Standards Committee also noted that information about the investigation had been communicated to the press in breach of confidentiality.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

Sunak postponed the ban on sales of new petrol and diesel cars from 2030 to 2035 and removed or relaxed several policies requiring energy efficiency improvements, presenting the change as a more pragmatic route to net zero. The measures prompted criticism from environmental organisations, parts of the automotive industry and opponents who saw them as a retreat on climate policy.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Political responsibility

Sunak cancelled the northern section of HS2 between Birmingham and Manchester, citing the project's soaring costs, and announced that £36 billion would be redirected to hundreds of road, rail and local transport projects in the North and Midlands. Leaders in Manchester and other areas condemned the major loss of capacity and connectivity.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Political responsibility

Sunak received a fixed penalty notice from the Metropolitan Police for attending Boris Johnson's birthday gathering at Downing Street in June 2020, held while COVID restrictions limited gatherings. He paid the fine.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

It emerged that Akshata Murty, Sunak's wife, lawfully used the United Kingdom's non-domiciled tax status, allowing her not to pay UK tax on certain foreign income. The controversy intensified when it was revealed that Sunak had retained a US green card after entering government. Murty subsequently chose to pay British tax on her worldwide income.

State of the evidence

Documented

During the Conservative leadership campaign, a video showed Sunak explaining that he had started changing funding formulas which, he said, 'shoved all the funding into deprived urban areas', so that places such as affluent Tunbridge Wells would receive more resources. The opposition accused Sunak of diverting money away from the poorest areas.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

During the pandemic, former Prime Minister David Cameron repeatedly contacted Rishi Sunak, then Chancellor, in an attempt to secure Greensill Capital access to public financing schemes. Published documents show that Sunak replied that he had 'pushed' his team to explore options, before the Treasury ultimately rejected Greensill's proposal.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Political responsibility