Nadhim Zahawi’s first day as chancellor got off to the worst possible start after he was ambushed by two resignations live on air. He endured a hellish first morning in his new job after being asked to serve as a mouthpiece for Boris Johnson’s crumbling regime. The new chancellor faced a series of awkward meetings with the media, including being questioned about reports he threatened to quit if he was not given the keys to Number 11. He interrupted twice on BBC Radio 4’s Today program to be told of the resignations of Laura Trott and his former junior minister for education, Will Quince. When news of the former broke, Mr Zahawi began lecturing colleagues, saying: “The way you deliver trust is the way you deliver results for people. Delivery, delivery, delivery.” But he couldn’t finish his sentence before news of another appeared. Presenter Nick Robinson informed him of Mr Quince’s resignation, saying “it’s over, Mr Zahawi, isn’t it?”. He continued: “All I would say to colleagues is that people don’t vote for divided groups. We have to get together.’ The former vaccine minister was parachuted into the Treasury last night to replace Rishi Sunak shortly after his shock resignation. He was moved from the education department to a senior post amid swirling speculation about who could leave the cabinet. To view this video, please enable JavaScript and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Sajid Javid joined Mr Sunak on the way out, along with eight other figures in junior government positions. Mr Zahawi was pressed over reports that he gave Boris Johnson an ultimatum that he wanted to be chancellor as a price for his loyalty. He told Sky News: “No, I didn’t threaten to quit at all.” Liz Truss was reportedly in line for the role, but Mr Zahawi said he would quit if she didn’t get the job. He denied it again, telling the broadcaster “that’s not true”. Mr Zahawi previously oversaw the vaccine program and headed the education department (Image: Reuters) Asked why he did not resign after Mr Johnson admitted the Chris Pincher affair, he hit out at his predecessor for taking the “easy” way out. He said: “You don’t get into this job to have an easy life. You make some tough decisions every day. “Sometimes it’s easy to walk away, but it’s actually much harder to contribute to the country.” His appointment could signal a change in the government’s economic approach after months of reported tension between Mr Johnson and Mr Sunak. The prime minister is said to want to go further and faster on tax cuts, but has faced resistance from a Treasury worried about balancing the books. To view this video, please enable JavaScript and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video The Johnson-Sunak tandem at the heart of the government finally broke down last night (Image: Getty) Mr Zahawi noted today that nothing was off the table, including “looking again” at a planned corporation tax increase due to take effect next year. Asked about his approach to tax cuts, he said: “I will look at everything, nothing is off the table.” Mr Zahawi faces a difficult task as the economy slides into recession amid record prices. Asked about his priorities at work, he said: “The important thing is to get inflation under control, to be fiscally responsible. “The first thing we have to do is make sure we’re really careful, whether it’s public sector pay, that inflation doesn’t continue to be fueled.” “Today, we face a global battle with inflation.” Contact our news team by emailing us at [email protected] For more stories like this, check out our news page.
