Nadhim Zahawi: Rishi Sunak facing questions over sacking of Tory chairman - BBC News
BBC Posted at 6:506:50
The sacking of Nadhim Zahawi as Tory party chairman over a penalty he was forced to pay to HMRC dominates Monday's papers.
"Rotten To The Core" is how the Daily Mirror describes the Conservative party, branding Rishi Sunak a "dithering leader" who "finally" made the decision to sack the Tory chairman after weeks of reports about his tax affairs.
The Independent also asks why it took so long - considering it started covering the story more than six months ago. But a friend of Sunak's tells the Times the PM "won't hesitate to act when there's impropriety" and that he plans to take a "zero-tolerance approach to future breaches of the ministerial code".
The Times also suggests Zahawi is "furious" about his firing - and is considering issuing a formal response to the report by Sunak's ethics chief, Sir Laurie Magnus, which sealed his fate. According to the Daily Telegraph, he was given "one 30-minute meeting to defend himself".
But the Sun says Zahawi only has himself to blame, criticising him for taking an "undignified swipe" at the press for covering the story.
