A former Tory minister told the Observer that the fear among Conservative MPs with a small majority was that the party was now in a “death spiral” with its two leading figures – the prime minister and the chancellor – both having lose respect among voters. “The concern is that this is a symptom of a party in a final collapse and that we are on the verge of death,” the former minister said after Sunak’s multimillionaire wife, Aksata Merti, agreed to pay a tax to the UK on the world having avoided doing so in accordance with rules applicable to persons choosing non-resident status. Referring to the whole controversy and the revelations about the couple that they had green cards in the USA, the former minister added: “This is the concern of the colleagues with a small majority. “He has shown colossal innocence and the way he has handled his affairs does not mean that he is even committed to the United Kingdom, but that he is open to choosing a career in economics in the United States.” Rishi Sunak and his wife, Akshata Murthy. She acknowledged that some did not see her tax status as compatible with her husband’s position. Photo: Reuters On Friday, it was also revealed that the chancellor and Merti both had US green cards, meaning they were registered as permanent residents in the US. In a development that shocked many Tories, it was confirmed that Sunak had the green card for a period of 19 months when he was Chancellor and in charge of UK finances. The issue was even raised in the White House on Friday afternoon. A former Tory cabinet minister said Sunak was clearly damaged and would have no chance of running for office in the coming months. The way he handled his family’s affairs had shown that his political crisis was very wrong and raised questions about whether his leadership chances could ever be revived, he said. A third senior party official said the controversy of recent days had shown how quickly a once-stellar career could be reversed, to a point from which it would be difficult to recover. “The timing is terrible. I think his problem is that taxes have risen a lot during the chancellor’s term, which is not popular in the party or the country. And we have a cost of living crisis. None of this looks good. “ It was reported that evacuation trucks were seen yesterday on Downing Street and that Merti and the two children would be staying at their home in west London with Sunak remaining at No. 11 during the working week. Johnson is thought to be considering a ministerial reshuffle in the summer or fall. It is known that there were tensions between No. 10 and No. 11, since the chancellor offered only lukewarm support to Johnson in the culmination of the scandal for the parties that destroy the lockdown, before the Russian invasion of Ukraine. A government source said: “I do not see the Prime Minister resisting this opportunity to oust Risi.” The latest Opinium poll for the Observer shows that Sunak’s acceptance score has dropped to his new low of -15, making him slightly less popular than Johnson himself. Just four months ago, when he was a firm favorite to succeed Johnson if the prime minister was ousted after a party at No. 10, the chancellor’s acceptance score was at a very healthy plus 11. All opposition parties are now determined to keep up the pressure on Sunak in the coming weeks. Labor and the Liberal Democrats called on Merti, who remains an Indian citizen, not only to start paying taxes on her earnings abroad but also to return what she had saved in recent years. Shadow transport secretary Louise Haigh said that while her status as a “non-dom” was legal, Sunak, who claimed last week that she had been the victim of a defamation campaign, was not transparent about her family’s tax status at the time. was a tax increase for millions of people. “He has come out many times to try to blur the waters around it and blur it,” he said. In a statement on Friday, Merti, who is to maintain India as her “place of residence”, said she had done nothing wrong but acknowledged that some people did not see her tax regime as compatible with her husband’s position. “I understand and appreciate the British sense of justice and I do not want my tax regime to distract my husband or affect my family,” she said. “I do it because I want to, not because the rules require it.” Maintaining the status of non-resident will be able to save huge amounts in inheritance tax in the future. Murty has assets of at least 90 690 million in her father’s company, Infosys. The Liberal Democrats have drafted a bill aimed at forcing the chancellor and any other government minister to reveal whether they or their spouses claim they do not live or participate in tax havens abroad. Daniel Beizsley, a researcher at the charity Spotlight on Corruption, said the fact that Sunak had a blind trust in which his financial interests were handed over to an independent administrator raised questions about possible conflicts of interest. “By enforcing this arrangement, Sunak is preventing any proper control of his financial interests and is the only current member of the cabinet to follow this approach. “The system of blind trusts should be reviewed to include at least a summary of their contents, if it is relevant to informing a minister, to give the public a better understanding of any potential conflicts.”
