Former chancellor Nadhim Zahawi to stand down at next election

Former chancellor and education secretary Nadhim Zahawi has announced he will not stand at the next general election.

The MP for Stratford-on-Avon revealed the news in a resignation letter posted to X, formerly Twitter.

He said: “After 14 years in Parliament, and multiple roles in Cabinet and Government, I have come to the decision not to stand again at the next general election.”

Mr Zahawi said he would continue to serve his constituents until the next election and that “the Prime Minister, and the Conservative Party, will continue to have my unswerving support into and beyond the next general election”.

He said was proud that his constituents could confide in him, adding: “Whether they are struggling against the dead hand of bureaucracy, or are stricken by tragedy, being able to help them in their time of need remains one of the most meaningful things I have ever done”.

Mr Zahawi was education secretary from September 2021 to July 2022 and had a short stint as chancellor of the exchequer between July and September 2022.

In 2023, Rishi Sunak sacked Mr Zahawi as Tory Party chairman after an ethics inquiry found he had broken the Ministerial Code several times over his tax affairs.

“My mistakes have been mine, and my successes have come from working with, and leading, amazing people,” he wrote on Thursday.

Mr Zahawi is the 65th Tory MP – out of a total of 344 Conservatives in the Commons – to have announced they will not stand at the next election.