Rishi Sunak: From Zahawi and Raab to seatbelt gaffe – the U-turns and scandals of his first months as PM
Rishi Sunak’s first three months as prime minister have been far from plain sailing.
Significant storm clouds are hanging over the government as the prime minister looks to overturn Labour’s commanding lead in the polls.
Despite Mr Sunak trying to distance himself from the turbulent premiership of Boris Johnson, rows over propriety and standards have continued.
Here, Sky News looks at the scandals and U-turns during his time as PM – including his sacking of Tory chairman Nadhim Zahawi.
Follow reaction to Zahawi’s sacking – live updates
Suella Braverman
Just a few days into his premiership, Mr Sunak was under significant pressure over his reappointment of Suella Braverman as home secretary after a former party chair claimed she had committed “multiple breaches” of the ministerial code.
The week before, Ms Braverman had resigned from the same role in former PM Liz Truss’s government after using her personal email address to forward sensitive government documents, breaking the rules ministers have to abide by.
But Mr Sunak put her back into the Home Office on the following Tuesday, and stood by the decision after being pressed on it in the Commons the next day.
Former Tory Party chair Sir Jake Berry alleged “there were multiple breaches of the ministerial code”, while Nadhim Zahawi said officials within the Cabinet Office had warned against bringing her back due to security breaches.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer accused Mr Sunak of having done a “grubby deal” with Ms Braverman – a figure popular on the right of the party – in order to secure the keys to Number 10.
But the PM resisted the calls to sack Ms Braverman and she remains in post as home secretary.
Gavin Williamson
Mr Sunak’s judgement came under further scrutiny just a few weeks later after cabinet minister Sir Gavin Williamson quit, vowing to clear his name over bullying claims.
Sir Gavin, who at the time was attending cabinet as a minister without portfolio, was accused of abusive behaviour towards MPs and civil servants – but denies any wrongdoing.
He was accused of sending abusive text messages to Wendy Morton, the former chief whip under Liz Truss, complaining that he and other colleagues had been excluded from the Queen’s funeral for political reasons.
The prime minister tried to let an independent investigation into the matter run its course, defending Sir Gavin in media interviews for “expressing regret” while condemning his language.
But Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper accused Mr Sunak of ignoring the complaint and called for Sir Gavin to be sacked.
Sir Gavin was previously fired as defence secretary in May 2019 over allegations of leaking info from National Security Council meetings, and lost his job as education secretary after two years when Mr Johnson decided to drop him in a cabinet reshuffle.
But Mr Sunak did not pull the trigger to axe one of his biggest backers behind the scenes, with Sir Gavin opting to quit himself over the row.
Dominic Raab
In November, numerous allegations about Justice Secretary Dominic Raab’s behaviour surfaced relating to his previous stint in the role under Mr Johnson, with staff reportedly offered a “route out” of his department when he was reinstated in October.
Civil servants who worked with him told The Guardian he was a “very rude and aggressive” boss while another report claimed the justice secretary had acquired the nickname “The Incinerator” because he “burns through” staff.
Despite the allegations, Mr Sunak stood by his close ally, telling reporters: “I don’t recognise that characterisation of Dominic and I’m not aware of any formal complaints about him.”
But additional weight was added to the claims following a report by Bloomberg that Simon Case, the head of the civil service, was told by senior officials of concerns about Mr Raab’s abrasive treatment of junior staff and took steps to try to improve his behaviour.
A Cabinet Office spokesperson at the time said: “We have no record of any formal complaints.”
It was revealed that Mr Raab has reportedly been the subject of formal bullying complaints by at least 24 civil servants.
Eight formal allegations have been levelled against the deputy prime minister and are being investigated by senior lawyer Adam Tolley KC.
But the PM has resisted calls to suspend Mr Raab while the probe is conducted.
Nadhim Zahawi
Earlier this month, The Sun On Sunday published a report claiming Mr Zahawi had paid a seven-figure sum to settle a tax dispute over the sale of his YouGov shares.
The shares, worth an estimated £27m, were held by Balshore Investments, a company registered offshore in Gibraltar linked to Mr Zahawi’s family.
Sky News understands that, as part of a settlement with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), Mr Zahawi paid a penalty to the tax collector.
Mr Sunak ordered an investigation by Sir Laurie Magnus, his independent adviser on ministers’ interests, into whether Mr Zahawi broke ministerial rules over the estimated £4.8m bill he apparently settled with HMRC while he was chancellor.
The PM told MPs that while it would have been “politically expedient” to sack Mr Zahawi, “due process” meant that the investigation into his tax affairs should be allowed to reach its conclusion.
Mr Zahawi said HMRC concluded there had been a “careless and not deliberate” error in the way the shares had been treated and has insisted he is “confident” and has “acted properly throughout”.
However on Sunday, the PM sacked Mr Zahawi as Tory party chairman after the inquiry into the handling of his tax affairs found a “serious breach” of the ministerial code.
Seatbelt fine
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‘I regret not wearing a seatbelt’
Mr Sunak was given a fixed penalty notice after being caught not wearing a seatbelt.
Lancashire Police issued the notice after the prime minister appeared without a belt in a clip on Instagram as he promoted his levelling-up funding policies in the county.
Mr Sunak accepted the fine. Fines of up to £500 can be issued for failing to wear a seatbelt when one is available.
In a statement, Number 10 said: “The prime minister fully accepts this was a mistake and has apologised. He will of course comply with the fixed penalty.”
After being issued with the fixed penalty notice, Mr Sunak became the second serving prime minister – after Mr Johnson – to be found to have broken the law while in office.
Like Mr Johnson, he has previously been fined by the Met Police for breaking lockdown rules.
After the seatbelt fine, Labour said the prime minister has been turned into a “laughing stock”.
Multiple U-turns
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Has the PM made a U-turn on onshore wind farms?
Within the first three months of his premiership, Mr Sunak has also been forced to carry out a series of U-turns to appease Conservative backbench MPs.
Mandatory housebuilding targets were ditched following pressure from the PM’s own side.
Facing a rebel amendment from around 30 Tory MPs – including former PMs Boris Johnson and Liz Truss – Mr Sunak also U-turned over a ban on onshore wind by saying turbines could be installed if the projects gain the support of local communities.
Mr Sunak’s line that he would not attend the COP27 climate summit in Egypt due to “pressing domestic commitments” was also reversed following outrage from environmental campaigners – with COP26 President Alok Sharma saying he was “pretty disappointed” by the prime minister’s original decision, and the PM ultimately giving way to pressure to attend.
World
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The COP29 climate talks have reached a last ditch deal on cash for developing countries, pulling the summit back from the brink of collapse after a group of countries stormed out of a negotiating room earlier.
The slew of deals finally signed off in the small hours of Sunday morning in Azerbaijan includes one that proved hardest of all – one about money.
Eventually the more than 190 countries in Baku agreed a target for richer polluting countries such as the UK, EU and Japan to drum up $300bn a year by 2035 to help poorer nations both curb and adapt to climate change.
It is a far cry from the $1.3trn experts say is needed, and from the $500bn that vulnerable countries like Uganda had said they would be willing to accept.
But in the end they were forced to, knowing they could not afford to live without it, nor wait until next year to try again, when a Donald Trump presidency would make things even harder.
Bolivia’s lead negotiator Diego Pacheco called it an “insult”, while the Marshall Islands’ Tina Stege said it was “not nearly enough, but it’s a start”.
UN climate chief Simon Stiell said: “This new finance goal is an insurance policy for humanity, amid worsening climate impacts hitting every country.
“No country got everything they wanted, and we leave Baku with a mountain of work still to do. So this is no time for victory laps.”
The funding deal was clinched more than 24 hours into overtime, and against what felt like all the odds.
The talks were rocked from the start by the incoming presidency of climate denier Mr Trump, the moment Argentina’s team were recalled back to Buenos Aires by their right-wing president and a controversial letter that sent shockwaves through the United Nations.
Pic: AP
The fraught two weeks of negotiations pitted the anger of developing countries who are footing the bill for more dangerous weather that they did little to cause, against the tight public finances of rich countries.
A relieved Juan Carlos Monterrey Gomez, climate envoy for Panama, said there is “light at the end of the tunnel”.
Just hours ago, the talks almost fell apart as furious vulnerable nations stormed out of negotiations in frustration over that elusive funding goal.
They were also angry with oil and gas producing countries, who stood accused of trying to dilute aspects of the deal on cutting fossil fuels.
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Climate-vulnerable nations storm out of talks
The UN talks work on consensus, meaning everyone has to agree for a deal to fly.
A row over how to follow up on last year’s pledge to “transition away from fossil fuels” was left unresolved and punted into next year, following objections from Chile and Switzerland for being too weak.
A draft deal simply “reaffirmed” the commitment but did not dial up the pressure in the way the UK, EU, island states and many others here wanted.
Saudi Arabia fought the hardest against any step forward on cutting fossil fuels, the primary cause of climate change that is intensifying floods, drought and fires around the world.
Governments did manage to strike a deal on carbon markets at COP29, which has been 10 years in the making and will allow countries to trade emissions cuts.
‘Not everything we wanted’
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The UK’s energy secretary, Ed Miliband, said the deal is “not everything we or others wanted”, but described it as a “step forward”.
“It’s a deal that will drive forward the clean energy transition, which is essential for jobs and growth in Britain and for protecting us all against the worsening climate crisis,” he added.
“Today’s agreement sends the signal that the clean energy transition is unstoppable.
“It is the biggest economic opportunity of the 21st century and through our championing of it we can help crowd in private investment.”
Protesters at the summit in Baku. Pic: AP
Read more:
Azerbaijan president hails oil and gas as ‘gift from God’
UN climate summits ‘no longer fit for purpose’
The Azerbaijan team leading COP29 said: “Every hour of the day, we have pulled people together. Every inch of the way, we have pushed for the highest common denominator.
“We have faced geopolitical headwinds and made every effort to be an honest broker for all sides.”
At least 20 people have been killed and 66 injured in Israeli strikes on central Beirut, Lebanese authorities have said.
Lebanon‘s health ministry said the death toll could rise as emergency workers dig through the rubble looking for survivors. DNA tests are being used to identify the victims, the ministry added.
The attack destroyed an eight-storey residential building and badly damaged several others around it in the Basta neighbourhood at 4am (2am UK time) on Saturday.
The central Basta neighbourhood in Beirut
The Israeli military did not warn residents to evacuate before the attack and has not commented on the casualties.
At least four bombs were dropped in the attack – the fourth targeting the city centre this week.
A separate drone strike in the southern port city of Tyre this morning killed two people and injured three, according to the state-run National News Agency.
The victims were Palestinian refugees from the nearby al Rashidieh camp who were out fishing, according to Mohammed Bikai, spokesperson for the Fatah Palestinian faction in the Tyre area.
Israel’s military warned residents today in parts of Beirut’s southern suburbs that they were near Hezbollah facilities, which the army would target in the near future. The warning, posted on X, told people to evacuate at least 500 metres away.
The army said that over the past day it had conducted intelligence-based strikes on Hezbollah targets in Dahiyeh, in Beirut’s southern suburbs, where Hezbollah has a strong presence. It said it hit several command centres and weapons storage facilities.
Pic: AP
Israel has killed several Hezbollah leaders in air strikes on the capital’s southern suburbs.
Heavy fighting between Israel and Hezbollah is ongoing in southern Lebanon, as Israeli forces push deeper into the country since launching a major offensive in September.
According to the Lebanese health ministry, at least 3,670 people have been killed in Israeli attacks there, with more than 15,400 wounded.
It has displaced about 1.2 million people – a quarter of Lebanon’s population – while Israel says about 90 soldiers and nearly 50 civilians have been killed in northern Israel.
Read more:
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‘Dozens’ of Palestinians killed in Israeli airstrike
Meanwhile, six people, including three children and two women, were killed in the southern Gazan city of Khan Younis.
Some 44,176 Palestinians have been killed since the start of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, according to the Gaza health ministry.
The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count, but it has said that more than half of the fatalities are women and children.
The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on 7 October 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking another 250 hostage.
US envoy Amos Hochstein was in the region this week to try to end more than 13 months of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, ignited last October by the war in Gaza.
Mr Hochstein indicated progress had been made after meetings in Beirut on Tuesday and Wednesday, before going to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and defence minister Israel Katz.
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