Analysis: Tory Scandals Show It’s Still A Small Club Of Rich And Connected Men At The Top

It's murky and involves relatives, money and politicians.
Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak.
Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak.
Dan Kitwood via Getty Images

Boris Johnson is in hot water over claims he used a distant cousin called Sam Blyth as a guarantor for an £800,000 loan.

Richard Sharp, is accused of helping to facilitate that loan - just as he was successfully applying to be BBC chairman.

Incidentally, Sharp is a former banker who used to be Rishi Sunak’s boss at Goldman Sachs.

The prime minister is now facing uncomfortable questions over his ex-boss and might even end up deciding his fate. What a small world it is!

The senior Tory MP ended up paying HMRC around £5 million while he was chancellor following a dispute over his tax liabilities.

That saga surrounds Zahawi’s links to a Gibraltar-based trust of which his father is a director. It’s all tremendously confusing.

But what these scandals show us is that the British government still has a small club of rich and connected men at the top.

Scratch the surface and you will find school, personal and financial contacts among those running the country and its institutions.

As hard-working Brits battle with their energy bills, a government consumed by the intricacies of these wealthy men’s finances looks even more out of touch.

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