Rishi Sunak: A quick guide to the UK’s former prime minister

Rishi Sunak resigned as prime minister on Friday 5 July after losing the 2024 election. Here's what you need to know about him.

He was the UK prime minister for 20 months

Rishi Sunak was appointed as leader of the Conservative Party on 25 October 2022. In the 2024 election, Labour won the most seats in Parliament, meaning they will form the next government.

Mr Sunak won in his constituency of Richmond in North Yorkshire, where he told supporters: "The British people have delivered a sobering verdict tonight, there is much to learn... and I take responsibility for the loss."

He then resigned as prime minister and leader of the Conservative Party but will remain an MP.

He became PM after Liz Truss resigned

Mr Sunak lost to Liz Truss in a Conservative Party leadership race in September 2022, after Boris Johnson resigned as prime minister. But Truss also resigned, just six weeks after becoming PM, following her decisions which damaged the economy.

Mr Sunak quickly secured the support of his fellow Conservative MPs to secure his place at No 10.

He made five pledges to the British people

Shortly after becoming PM, Sunak promised to halve inflation, grow the economy, reduce government debt, cut NHS waiting lists, and stop illegal immigrants coming to the UK in small boats across the Channel.

He succeeded in the first two promises, but the other three all got worse during his time in charge.

He is the son of immigrants

His parents came to the UK from east Africa and are both of Indian origin. Mr Sunak was born in Southampton in 1980, where his father was a GP and his mother ran a pharmacy. He went to the boarding school Winchester College, then studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Oxford, and business at Stanford in America. He is now the first British Asian prime minister.

He's only been an MP for nine years

Mr Sunak was first elected as an MP in 2015. But he rose quickly through the Conservative Party and was made finance minister - or chancellor - in February 2020 under Boris Johnson.

He was in charge of Covid support cash

As Mr Johnson's chancellor, Mr Sunak was behind the financial aid during lockdowns - including furlough payments and the "Eat Out to Help Out" scheme for restaurants.

He's thought to be one of the richest MPs

His wife is Akshata Murty, the daughter of Indian billionaire Narayana Murthy. Mr Sunak himself worked for investment bank Goldman Sachs and at two hedge funds before becoming an MP.

The Sunday Times Rich List estimated the couple's fortune to be worth about £651m in 2024, making them richer than the king. They have two daughters.

The couple faced controversy over their international lifestyle

In 2022, it emerged Akshata Murthy paid no UK tax on big earnings abroad, which is legal as an Indian citizen. Mr Sunak defended his wife saying: "to smear my wife to get at me is awful".

Eventually she agreed to start paying the taxes. We also found out he temporarily had a US green card, allowing him to live permanently in America while he was the UK's chancellor.

He really wanted to be... a Jedi

In 2016, he told a group of schoolchildren that he originally wanted to be a Jedi Knight when he grew up. His favourite Star Wars film is The Empire Strikes Back.