the british prime minister has sacked the chairman of his party, nadhim zahawi, following an investigation into his tax affairs. mr zahawi says he ll continue to support the prime minister from the backbenches, and criticised journalists for the way they reported his tax affairs. here s our political correspondent david wallace lockhart he arrived in the uk as a young refugee before becoming a successful businessman. he served as the vaccines minister, rising to become chancellor, this morning he was chairman of the conservative party but his ministerial career now lies in tatters. he had faced questions for some time about his previous tax affairs and the fact he paid a penalty to hmrc while he was in charge of the treasury. he insisted he acted appropriately throughout. the prime minister had asked his ethics adviser to investigate. sir laurie magnus reported back this morning. his findings were highly critical. in a letter to rishi sunak he said from april 2021 nadhim zaha
the prime minister had asked his ethics adviser to investigate. sir laurie magnus reported back this morning. his findings were highly critical. in a letter to rishi sunak he said from april 2021 nadhim zahawi should have understood that he was under investigation by hmrc. he went on to say that nadhim zahawi failed to disclose relevant information, in this case the nature of the investigation and it outcome of a penalty. he concluded that his admissions amounted to a serious failure to meet the high standards set out in the ministerial code. in a one page letter, the prime minister sealed nadhim zahawi s fate. he said it was clear there had been a serious breach of the ministerial code and that he was sacked from the government. the ethics adviser was also critical of what he labelled an untrue statement from nadhim zahawi, that he echoed in an interview last july. i was clearly being smeared. i was being told that the serious fraud office, that hmrc are looking into me. i m
hello and welcome to bbc news. we begin this hour with some breaking news from scotland, where the prison service has announced an urgent review of all transgender cases in its prisons. it says it will pause the movement of all transgender inmates until the review is complete. it follows the outcry of the case of isla bryson, a trans woman convicted of raping two women before changing gender. isla bryson was initially remanded to cornton vale women s prison before being moved to a male wing at hmp edinburgh. the scottish prison service says that we have commenced an urgent review of all trans gender cases currently manage in our establishment. ourfirst cases currently manage in our establishment. our first concern cases currently manage in our establishment. ourfirst concern is always and remains the health, safety and well being of all the people in our care and that of our staff. we have very robust risk assessment processes and a track record of keeping people safe in ofte
the british prime minister has sacked the chairman of his party, nadhim zahawi, following an investigation into his tax affairs. mr zahawi says he ll continue to support the prime minister from the backbenches and criticised journalists for the way they reported his tax affairs. here s our political correspondent chris mason. nadhim zahawi arrived in the uk as a child, unable to speak english. he became a multimillionaire and rose to be chancellor of the exchequer. but tonight, his political career and reputation is in tatters. in a 2,000 word letter to the prime minister, the government s ethics adviser is devastating in his criticism of mr zahawi. sir laurie magnus says. minutes after the prime minister had sacked his party chairman for what he called a serious breach of the ministerial code, the questions began. for a start, why hadn t he got rid of him days ago? as a general rule, i think it is important when allegations are raised that they re investigated promptly. but
mr zahawi had to pay a penalty to settle a multi million pound tax dispute, an investigation ordered by rushi sunakfound he had broken the ministerial code. mr zahawi says he ll continue to support the prime minister from the backbenches, and criticised journalists for the way they reported his tax affairs. our political editor chris mason reports. nadhim zahawi arrived in the uk as a child, unable to speak english. he became a multimillionaire and rose to be chancellor of the exchequer. but tonight, his political career and reputation is in tatters. in a 2,000 word letter to the prime minister, the government s ethics adviser is devastating in his criticism of mr zahawi. sir laurie magnus says. minutes after the prime minister had sacked his party chairman for what he called a serious breach of the ministerial code, the questions began. for a start, why hadn t he got rid of him days ago? as a general rule, i think it is important when allegations are raised that they re inve