UK

THE PUPPET MASTER
Rishi Sunak told by Murdoch team not to quit over partygate
Ben Riley-Smith
Fri, September 15, 2023 



Rupert Murdoch and Rishi Sunak

Rishi Sunak drafted a resignation statement on the day he was fined by police for breaching lockdown rules, but was persuaded to stay on after an intervention by executives working for Rupert Murdoch.

On April 12 last year, Mr Sunak, then the chancellor, was fined for attending a birthday gathering for Boris Johnson, then the prime minister, who also received a fine on the same day. The gathering broke Covid lockdown laws.

A new book on the Conservatives’ long run in power by Ben Riley-Smith, The Telegraph’s political editor, discloses that Mr Sunak circulated wording for his proposed resignation to allies, including some working for Mr Murdoch.

But he was talked out of resigning and remained in post until  July 5, when he quit shortly after Sajid Javid had announced that he was resigning. He was quickly followed by others, eventually triggering the collapse of the Johnson administration.

According to allies of Mr Johnson, Mr Murdoch became aware of Mr Sunak’s draft resignation statement and personally intervened to ensure he remained in post.

Mr Murdoch has declined to comment. On Friday night, a Downing Street spokesman said Mr Sunak and Mr Murdoch did not talk that day, but declined to comment on other conversations that allegedly took place.

It is understood that those who discussed the potential resignation with Mr Sunak included Lord Hague and Lord Finkelstein. Both are columnists on The Times, which is owned by Mr Murdoch.

The Telegraph has also established that the former chancellor talked through his plan to resign with Mas Siddiqui, an old friend and former colleague who is a director at Mr Murdoch’s News Corp in New York.

Whether a message of advice or support directly from Mr Murdoch to Mr Sunak was passed via a third party is not known.

The revelation is contained in The Right to Rule, which details how the Conservative Party has remained in power since 2010, with more than 120 key players interviewed.

The development was significant because if Mr Sunak had quit in April last year it might have put paid to his leadership ambitions to replace Mr Johnson, as he would have been cast as a disloyal Cabinet ally plotting to bring down the prime minister.

By delaying his resignation until a point at which many others were ready to walk out, this accusation was neutered – although it still became an issue in the leadership contest.

After staying on, with later support from parts of Mr Murdoch’s media empire, Mr Sunak went on to become one of the main contenders for the leadership.

Other disclosures include:

• Mr Sunak asked MPs in the Treasury to back him in a future leadership race in February 2022, five months before Mr Johnson resigned and triggered a contest.

• Mr Johnson begged Lynton Crosby, the Australian political strategist, not to work with Mr Sunak around the start of 2022, fearing that his chancellor was on manoeuvres.

• The then prime minister was urged to step down by a Downing Street insider friendly with Mr Sunak, with sources quoting the figure as saying “they’re going to get you” or “we’re going to get you”.

• Mr Sunak did not speak to Mr Johnson, either in person, by telephone or via text, to inform him that he was quitting as chancellor before announcing it.

The revelations are set to reignite debate about last year’s events, when Mr Sunak and Mr Javid, then the health secretary, resigned within minutes of each other. Mr Johnson announced that he was quitting less than 48 hours later.

The former prime minister’s allies continue to point the finger at Mr Sunak over his downfall, but Mr Sunak’s friends and many other Tories say Mr Johnson’s flaws were to blame.

On April 12, both Mr Sunak and Mr Johnson received fixed penalty notices over the birthday gathering in the Cabinet Room.

The then chancellor, who often speaks about the importance of integrity, instinctively wanted to resign, according to multiple well-placed sources who recounted events.

He went as far as to draft the wording of his resignation and discussed that with trusted figures who have roles in Mr Murdoch’s media empire while weighing up his options.

One of those figures was Mr Siddiqui. He and Mr Sunak knew each other from the world of finance, both having worked at Goldman Sachs and The Children’s Investment Fund Management.

Mr Siddiqui is one of eight members on the board of News Corp, according to the company’s website. Mr Murdoch is executive chairman, and his son Lachlan is co-chairman. Mr Siddiqui is lead director.

Mr Sunak also discussed resigning that day with Lord Hague and Lord Finkelstein. Lord Hague, the former Tory leader, was the MP for Richmond directly before Mr Sunak, and Lord Finkelstein sometimes attends Mr Sunak’s preparation sessions for Prime Minister’s Questions.

It is understood Mr Sunak was warned that he was being politically naive because resigning could have led directly to Mr Johnson’s ousting, given that he had been fined over the same event.

He was also warned that being seen to have directly brought down Mr Johnson would have weakened his chances of winning the Tory leadership in the contest that would follow

Since being forced out of Downing Street, Mr Johnson has told others that Mr Murdoch intervened that day to dissuade Mr Sunak from quitting.

He has also claimed Mr Murdoch told him as much directly, and scores of Johnson allies continue to repeat similar versions of the story.

A spokesman for Mr Johnson said he did not recognise the account.

Mr Murdoch’s influence on politics since buying media titles in the UK has been well documented over the decades.

Senior Labour figures still continue to debate whether Sir Tony Blair’s decision to woo the Murdochs and their executives before the 1997 general election was the right one.

The Sun, the UK tabloid owned by Mr Murdoch, publicly switched support from the Conservatives to Labour before that election.

A News UK spokesman said Mr Murdoch and Mr Siddiqui declined to comment.