Inside Rishi Sunak’s family life with wife and kids as he hands in resignation
Rishi Sunak will be exiting 10 Downing Street after a Labour landslide in the 2024 General Election.
The Conservative Party is set to suffer it’s worst-ever defeat, winning the lowest total number of seats in its 200-year history.
In a speech outside Number 10, Sunak conceded: ‘I have given this job my all but you have sent a clear signal that the government of the United Kingdom must change and yours is the only judgment that matters. I have heard your anger, your disappointment. And I take responsibility for this loss.’
Standing behind him was his wife, Akshata Murthy, and many will be wondering what is next for the former PM and his family of four, who have inhabited Number 10 since October 2022.
Others, however, want to know more about his background and family life.
Who is Rishi Sunak’s wife?
Rishi Sunak met his wife – Akshata Murthy – when he was studying at Stanford University.
The couple wed in 2009 in Akshata’s home city of Bangalore in southern India.
Akshata, 42, has a famous father, the Indian billionaire N.R. Narayana Murthy, who co-founded IT company Infosys – and is officially one of India’s richest men. Forbes puts his astronomical net worth at $4.3 billion (£3.1 billion).
Akshata’s mother is named Sudha Murthy, and has been married to N.R. since 1978. She also has a brother, Rohan, who is a junior fellow at Harvard University in Massachusetts.
Wife Akshata used to work in finance and marketing, but later turned to fashion design and runs her own label, Akshata Designs.
There was controversy in 2022 when Akshata’s non-domicile tax status was revealed.
Does Rishi Sunak have children?
The couple share young daughters, named Krishna and Anoushka.
Mr Sunak once joked on his website that his two girls keep him ‘busy and entertained’ when he’s not working.
It’s been reported by Hello! that the children attend private school Glendower Prep in London, where David and Victoria Beckham’s daughter Harper is also a pupil.
The family also owns a Labrador named Nova that they adopted in 2021.
Where does Rishi Sunak live?
Mr Sunak and his wife reportedly own four properties, including a flat in Central London and a home in Santa Monica, California.
However, it’s reported they live mainly in Kensington, West London, as well as spending weekends at their property in the village of Kirby Sigston, near Northallerton in North Yorkshire.
That’s close to where Rishi’s constituency is – he is the MP for Richmond (Yorkshire), a post he has held since 2015.
Rishi Sunak’s political background
Mr Sunak studied at the prestigious Winchester College Oxford, where he read Philosophy, Politics, and Economics.
He then went to California to earn an MBA as a Fulbright Scholar – perhaps the most well-respected education exchange programme around – at the Ivy League college Stanford University.
However, he was soon back in the UK working at investment bank Goldman Sachs.
He moved into hedge fund management and became a partner at The Children’s Investment Fund Management.
In 2010, when he was around age 29, he helped to start a private investment firm called Theleme Partners.
He was also a director of Catamaran Ventures, owned by his father-in-law, Indian businessman and billionaire N. R. Narayana Murthy.
He became a politician for the Conservative party in 2014, ultimately taking over the Richmond seat held by former Tory leader Lord William Hague in 2015.
He became Chancellor in 2020, and in this role he is perhaps most famous for the furlough scheme and the Eat Out To Help Out scheme – both during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Mr Sunak resigned as Chancellor of the Exchequer on July 5 2022, citing the differences between himself and PM Boris Johnson in his resignation letter.
Following the resignation of Liz Truss, who had replaced Boris Johnson as PM, Mr Sunak became Prime Minister in October 2022.
However, after the Conservative Party suffered a huge defeat in the 2024 General Election, Rishi Sunak is due to be replaced as Prime Minister by Labour Party leader Keir Starmer.
How old is Rishi Sunak?
Rishi Sunak is currently 44 years old – his birthday is May 12, 1980.
He was born to mum Usha, a chemist worker, and dad Yashvir, an NHS GP, in Southampton.
How tall is Rishi Sunak?
We got used to seeing Mr Sunak emerge from 11 Downing Street with his red Chancellor’s briefcase or folder in hand during his time in the role.
As a result, people often wonder exactly how tall he is. It’s not 100% confirmed, but Rishi Sunak is reportedly 5 foot 6 inches tall, or 1.7m.
That’s just four inches smaller than Boris Johnson, who stands at 5 foot 10 inches.
What is Rishi Sunak’s net worth?
Mr Sunak is thought to be the richest sitting MP, worth a reported £200 million, according to The Sun.
The Times report that the Sunaks share a property portfolio spanning across the UK and the US, which is collectively worth around £10 million.
This year, the Sunday Times Rich List reported that the combined personal wealth of Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murthy is estimated to be £651 million.
Ms Murthy’s own personal fortune is estimated to be around £430 million – which makes her richer than the late Queen Elizabeth II, whose wealth amounted to £350 million.
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