Oops 🙂

Todays headlines show the pressure mounting further on Zahawi.  How much longer can he cling on?    I just don’t get it.  Surely by now the Tories have learnt that hanging on in an indefensible position just creates more damage and makes the story last longer?  Hubris?

If he had resigned a few days ago this would be a non story by now.

Surely by now the Tories have learnt that hanging on in an indefensible position just creates more damage and makes the story last longer?

Well it worked out fine for Suella Braverman. By sticking to an indefensible position Rishi Sunak was able to keep Braverman in her reinstated role as Home Secretary, only days after she had been forced to resign.

What good it does the Tory Party is another issue. I think their arrogance, detachment, and entitlement, blinds them to the consequences of their actions.

Didn’t do Gavin Williamson much harm either. Or Priti Patel. The cabinet is full of retreads, reinstated by whoever the PM is this week.

Get sacked for something indefensible, serve some nominal time on the backbenches, then back you are in the cabinet like nothing ever happened.

Until next time….

They think a resignation would be an admission of guilt and corruption is so widespread that could lead to a deleterious domino effect. Who hasn’t fiddled their taxes, expenses, sniffed charlie, given the ferret a run? It’s the tory normal.

Those folk all resigned or were sacked, the fuss died down then reappointed.  Zahawi seems to be trying to brazen it out which I think causes more long term damage to their and the parties reputation.

Still – its a fun spectacle to watch

Those folk all resigned or were sacked, the fuss died down then reappointed.

Suella Braverman ceased to be Home Secretary for 6 days, I am not sure that the fuss had died down by the time Rishi Sunak decided to reappoint her.

I was going to post some stuff about the BBC Chair doing what we all suspect he was put in place to do… but as I was copying some links from Twitter, this popped up…

https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/prigozhin-government-russia-ukraine-hack-libel-slapp/

UK Treasury, then under Rishi Sunak’s control, let Yevgeny Prigozhin circumvent sanctions to target Eliot Higgins

The notorious libel suit against Eliot Higgins personally followed revelations by his website Bellingcat about Wagner’s shadowy operations, and was part of Prigozhin’s strategy to undermine the sanctions against him.

[ hacking details ]

It lays bare the incredible ease with which one of the world’s most notorious warmongers was able to use the UK legal system to try and further his aims, even while sanctioned.

Overriding sanctions can only be approved by a little-known department within the Treasury, called the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI), so that people can have the right to legal representation where necessary.

WTAF ?!?

Surely by now the Tories have learnt that hanging on in an indefensible position just creates more damage and makes the story last longer?

Brazening it out can and does work for long periods. Recent history examples being Cummings and the master of the art Johnson.
So its not inevitable although I think there is some truth in the if you are the story for a week then its probably temporary game over in most cases.

Damage to the party is a different story though although even there it can be somewhat balanced by trying to turn it into a all politicians are as bad as each other so everyone gets dragged down to their shitty level.

WTAF ?!?

This really needs more of a headline.
How the hell did someone get an exemption from sanctions just to carry out lawfare.

As for the lawyers. With the Zahawis ones as well there seems to be a real need for reform to prevent them using legal threats to silence people for the temerity of reporting about dodgy practices.

This Zahawi stuff just shows how weak Sunak is within the party. Under any normal circumstances Zahawi would be gone but Sunak doesn’t even have the authority to sack a proven tax dodger. In fact I wouldn’t be surprised if Johnson has cooked this up deliberately to destabilise Sunak, which could explain the reluctance to sack him.

You lose track of who’s in who’s faction though, don’t you? I’m sure there are plenty of the duplicitous bastards who are committed members of each, or maybe they don’t even know themselves

or maybe they don’t even know themselves

Yeah, but only cause they’re too **** stupid to remember, not because of some 4D political chess strategy.

In fact I wouldn’t be surprised if Johnson has cooked this up deliberately to destabilise Sunak

Thats giving Johnson way to much credit. Its been the best part of a years work by an independent researcher which finally bubbled over into front page news.

the best part of a years work by an independent researcher

And the link between the Wagner and YouGov stories… using the law to (try to) silence the truth. In one case millions of pounds of tax dodging truth, in the other case murderous and internationally destabilising truth of the worst kind imaginable. What kind of government have our most recent PMs given us?!? What kind of country?

What kind of government have our most recent PMs given us?!? What kind of country?

Normal for tory governments in terms of the corruption and money grabbing – just with less competence and with the internet allowing easier dissemination of the truth

Thats giving Johnson way to much credit. Its been the best part of a years work by an independent researcher which finally bubbled over into front page news.

Yes all the work was done by the person investigating, but the reason it ‘bubbles up’ into the headlines is probably due to backroom briefings to journalists by people who know what’s going on. Johnson will know exactly what Zahawi has or hasn’t done and his lackeys will be leaking that to journalists and probably also the labour party to give them the ammunition to go after Zahawi. At the same time they’re probably briefing that Sunak also knows all this which is why he can’t sack him because it would reflect badly on him.

Johnson made Zahawi Chancellor. The rise of this story won’t be his doing, his judgement is at much under scrutiny because of it as Sunak’s. The BBC (pulling in one of the other stories) only started talking about this once Zahawi was pushed into responding officially to the claims that were by then public knowledge and which he’d tried to suppress. Johnson’s fat fingers are in the making of this mess, not the uncovering of it.

It doesn’t mean he won’t stab him in the back

Johnson made Zahawi Chancellor.

And Zahawi then turned against him in the Truss coup. In any case Zahawi is just a pawn, the real game is undermining Sunak, and they’re playing it very well so far.

his judgement is at much under scrutiny because of it as Sunak’s

Yes but we all know that Johnson is teflon coated (laregly due to his influence over key journalists) and much more able to avoid any shit sticking to him.

If only they would put the same amount effort into running the country (not into the ground) as they do into lying, cheating and plotting against each other and the populace then we might actually see some governance rather than a bunch of crooks with the pretence of governing.

A journalist/researcher has worked his arse off for a year, and batted away legal threats, to uncover this story and bring it to the public’s attention. Papers like the Independent have been covering it for six months now (guess who was PM back then?) Don’t you dare give credit to Johnson for them being successful in making the wider world aware of all this. It’s got sod all to do with him.

This Zahawi stuff just shows how weak Sunak is within the party. Under any normal circumstances Zahawi would be gone but Sunak doesn’t even have the authority to sack a proven tax dodger.

I’m confused about Zahawi.

As I understand it, he set up a business presence in Gibraltar and used that to avoid Capital Gains Tax. But, well, isn’t that just what everyone does from Starbucks to Amazon to probably everyone else in government? It’s immoral, sure, but not illegal. The problem is our laws which allow this sort of thing.

Or have I completely misunderstood? I know very little about this stuff and only caught a snippet on the news last night.

It’s got sod all to do with him.

Yup. Its the same sort of playing 4d chess bullshit that the trump and musk fans come out with.
Its not.
Its pigeon chess.

Don’t you dare give credit to Johnson for them being successful in making the wider world aware of all this.

All they’ve done is jumped on the bandwagon and given it legs. Funny how it has only gained traction now? Johnson’s grubby paw prints are all over this. If you want any proof why do you think the BBC chairman helping Johnson with a load stuff has come out at the same time? That’s Sunak’s lot retaliating.

And now the plot thickens evern further..

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/jan/24/nadhim-zahawi-former-tory-minister-caroline-nokes-calls-step-down

It’s immoral, sure, but not illegal.

The CEO of Starbucks wasn’t also the Chancellor of the Exchequer (and the boss of HMRC) and isn’t the Tory party chairman (who is in charge of party fundraising).

I know very little about this stuff and only caught a snippet on the news last night.

This is the summary from the site who has been doing most of the digging.
Its still somewhat vague since he has lots of unanswered questions.
When Zahawi set up the yougov he handed over shares to a offshore trust for free. The question is about who is in charge of that trust and the excuses vary.
So whilst as you say there are various ways to cut tax he doesnt seem to have used any of the legal ones but instead used a dodgy approach which folded under investigation.

The problem is our laws which allow this sort of thing.

What he did financially wasn’t allowed by “our laws”, which is why he has had to pay tax owing and a penalty after being investigated. What was allowed by “our laws” was to threaten someone who was making all that known to the public, while he was in position of power. Tax dodger and using the law to suppress the truth… and a Chancellor at that.

Now, another former Chancellor (now PM) enabled Wagner to escape sanctions and use the law to try and gag another journalist telling the truth. Where are all the “free speech” warriors on all this? Allowing mercenary groups and government ministers to try and silence people uncovering their wrong doings?

Has he fired zahawi yet?

Has he fired zahawi yet?

Nope. They’re currently trying to distance themselves from Zahawi and trying to persuade him to resign (see link above) of his own accord. TBH I wouldn’t be at all surprised if Zahawi is taking one for the team, hence his resistance to resigning and forcing Sunak to sack him. If he’s going to go down they might as well weaponise it against Sunak, and then Johnson can repay his sacrifice later with a peerage. 🤷‍♂️

A journalist/researcher has worked his arse off for a year, and batted away legal threats, to uncover this story and bring it to the public’s attention.

Anmd yet the Beeb continue to cast doubt on his work by introducing him as “Labour supporter”.

It’s immoral, sure, but not illegal.

Most people would like sound moral judgement from politicians who pass and alter laws. They are generally a bit more relaxed about the moral integrity of those who make them a cup of coffee.

No idea which thread I should put this in, but as Sunak is currently PM I’m going with this one…

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/boris-johnson-loan-probe-bbc-29033019

Boris Johnson loan probe into BBC chair to be run by father of Rishi Sunak’s policy chief

William Shawcross, the Commissioner for Public Appointments, will lead a probe into Richard Sharp’s appointment as BBC chair. But Mr Shawcross’s daughter, Eleanor, is head of No10’s policy unit

“Nothing to see here” meme. :rolleyes:

I’m confused about Zahawi.

Zahawi claimed that the shares in YouGov were set up and owned in trust by his Father (the financial backer) through a Gibraltar Trust, and that he did not personally benefit from this trust. Subsequently a journalist showed that he’d received a personal payment from that trust when he claimed not to have ever done so, and hence he owned some of the shares. This payment will have sparked an interest (rad investigation) from HMRC. When the trust sold the shares Zahawi became eligible to pay capital gains tax on the profits from these shares (which he had previously claimed he did not own).

He was lying about having a personal interest in the trust and took out a super-injunction to avoid its reporting. Should be sacked without hesitation for attempted tax evasion. Paying a fine on top of the tax is an admission of guilt. Which is why the fine aspect is so important.

Radio4 covering the story I posted this morning right now.

Yevgeny Prigozhin, while under sanctions because of his links to Wagner, had permission from Sunak’s department to allow him to circumvent those sanctions in order to legally pursue a journalist that was pointing out his links to Wagner.

Utterly insane. Sunak can not stay. Journalists need more protection. The exceptions around sanctions rely on the probity of the politicians that oversee them. Sunak is clearly not to be trusted, and needs to out of government, if not parliament. Unfit to be PM or a minister, for sure. They might as well make Hunt the visible PM, not just leave him beavering around in the background… and call an election for May. Get it over and done with.

He was lying about having a personal interest in the trust and took out a super-injunction to avoid its reporting. Should be sacked without hesitation for attempted tax evasion. Paying a fine on top of the tax is an admission of guilt. Which is why the fine aspect is so important.

It is the lying that elevates it to tax evasion rather than avoidance. I suspect it was only his position in the government, and more particularly his job title briefly last year which put him in a position to negotiate it down to a mere penalty.

Here’s the rub. What if he asked for the Chancellor job to help prop up Boris Johnson mainly because as incoming or sitting chancellor it would put him in an advantageous position for concluding his negotiations with HMRC? Once that was done, knifes Boris and heads off the sinking ship quickly to be ready for the next PM.

Re: Prigozhin. I’m sure they will be looking for some civil servant fall guy. Hopefully that person has kept the receipts if they got the OK from Sunak or any other senior minister. Otherwise, it would be a resigning matter, not that that exists any more.

Kelvin – the problem is that there is no mechanism for getting rid of Sunak and calling an election other that the tory MPs wanting to – and they are not going to force an election

The best we can get is they continue to tear themselves apart and get (even more) unelectable

Paying a fine on top of the tax is an admission of guilt. Which is why the fine aspect is so important.

Also that the fine was for being ‘careless’ in his tax dealings; apparently that has a specific meaning in tax circles, broadly equivalent to being negligent in other legal matters.

As they said on R4 this morning – tax is difficult and people make mistakes, both individuals and HMRC. Where they are then identified, then back tax and small penalties can be levied.

But when the mistake is avoidable – and one assumes that when dealing with share ownership and liabilities relating to a large company you can arrange proper advice if you don’t know yourself – then the penalties get bigger. That’s the definition – avoidable by somebody taking proper care.

https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/compliance-handbook/ch53400

I also think (but who can ever really know) that Zahawi initially tried to brush this off when he said his error was ‘careless not deliberate’ in the hope that no-one would notice that ‘careless’ has a specific meaning in taxation, and we’d just assume it was an honest mistake. I wonder yet further  whether it really was deliberate but careless has been accepted as an easier option.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/jan/21/nadhim-zahawi-claims-error-with-his-taxes-careless-not-deliberate