UK ex-PM Rishi Sunak cleared for paid advisory roles with American tech giants
London (PTI): Britain's former prime minister Rishi Sunak has been cleared by a UK government watchdog to take on part-time paid advisory roles with tech giant Microsoft and AI firm Anthropic, both based in the US.
Sunak, who is now a backbench Conservative Party MP for Richmond and Northallerton, had approached the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments under the government's "Business Appointment Rules for Former Ministers".
The committee, which published its decision on Thursday, said Sunak should not draw on any “privileged information” available to him from his time in the prime ministerial office. He is also constrained from lobbying the government on behalf of either of the firms for at least two years.
"As the former prime minister, you will have been privy to a range of high-level sensitive information on more or less all government-related matters. Further, during your time in office, you had extensive industry engagement with companies and organisations within the AI and tech sector,” reads the committee's advice.
"The committee recognised the risks associated with your access to information are somewhat limited due to the passage of time and political and economic changes. It also considered it likely you will be seen to have privileged insight from your dealings with the tech and AI sector as prime minister, albeit some months ago. Consequently, a condition has been imposed to limit your role and reduce the scope for risks under government rules,” it stated.
Sunak told the watchdog that all proceeds from his new roles will be donated to The Richmond Project, an education charity he founded with his wife, Akshata Murty, to tackle numeracy issues among children in the UK.
“I have long believed that technology will transform our world and play a key part in determining our future,” said Sunak.
“We stand on the edge of a technological revolution whose impacts will be as profound as those of the industrial revolution: and felt more quickly. In my role as a senior adviser, I want to help these companies ensure that this shift delivers the improvements in all of our lives that it can,” he said.
The British Indian politician's latest roles follow a re-entry into the banking world as Senior Adviser at the Goldman Sachs Group, announced in July. He previously worked at Goldman Sachs as a summer intern in Investment Banking in 2000 and later as an analyst between 2001 and 2004.
His career in politics started when he was elected Tory MP in 2015 and went on to be appointed a junior minister, then Chancellor of the Exchequer, before taking charge as Britain's first prime minister of Indian heritage in October 2022. The 45-year-old MP moved to the backbenches of Parliament after the Tories lost the general election in July 2024.
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Ready to face no-confidence motion, says Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah
Hassan (Karnataka) (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday said that the Congress government led by him was ready to face the no-confidence motion if moved by the opposition during the legislature session from December 8.
With Deputy CM D K Shivakumar by his side, he reiterated that they would both abide by the high command's decision on the leadership issue.
"Let them (opposition) bring in a no-confidence motion or adjournment motion or any other motion. We are ready to face it. Ours is an open book, transparent government. We are ready to face anything," Siddaramaiah said in response to a question.
However, BJP state President B Y Vijayendra and Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Assembly R Ashoka, clarified that the party, along with the JD(S) has not discussed or decided anything so far regarding moving a no-confidence motion against the government.
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The winter session of the Karnataka legislature will begin in Belagavi, bordering Maharashtra, on December 8 and will go on till 19th of this month.
Not wanting to react to a question on the leadership issue, the CM said the Congress high command is very strong.
"D K Shivakumar and I will be committed to whatever the high command decides," he said.
Earlier in the day in Bengaluru, Shivakumar accompanied AICC Mallikarjun Kharge till airport from Vidhana Soudha, after paying tributes to B R Ambedkar on his 69th death anniversary, which had led to some speculation about possible discussion between the two on the leadership issue.
The power tussle within the ruling party had intensified amid speculation about a change in chief minister in the state, after the Congress government reached the halfway mark of its five-year term on November 20.
However, both the CM and Deputy CM had recently held breakfast meetings at each others residences, on the instructions of the high command, which is seen as a move to pause the leadership tussle between the two and to signal Siddaramaiah's continuation as the CM for the time being, especially ahead of the Belagavi legislature session.
