Title: Rishi Sunak Biography: Age, Career, and 5 Facts About the Former UK Prime Minister
Meta description: Rishi Sunak served as UK Prime Minister from 2022 to 2024. See his age, education, Goldman Sachs career, and political rise from Chancellor to Downing Street.
Who Is Rishi Sunak?
Rishi Sunak is a British Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from October 2022 to July 2024. He was the first British Asian and the first Hindu to hold the office, and at 42 years old on taking office, the youngest UK Prime Minister in more than 200 years.
Before entering politics, Sunak built a career in finance, working at Goldman Sachs and later at hedge funds. He has represented the constituency of Richmond, now Richmond and Northallerton, as a Member of Parliament since 2015.
What Is Rishi Sunak’s Age and Family Background?
Rishi Sunak was born on May 12, 1980, in Southampton, England, which makes him 46 years old as of September 2026.
His parents are of Indian Punjabi heritage. His grandparents migrated from Punjab to East Africa before his parents later settled in Southampton, England. His father worked as a general practitioner doctor, and his mother ran a local pharmacy.
Sunak is married to Akshata Murty, and the couple have 2 daughters together.
What Is Rishi Sunak’s Educational Background?
Rishi Sunak attended Winchester College before studying Philosophy, Politics, and Economics at Lincoln College, Oxford. He later earned an MBA at Stanford University in the United States as a Fulbright Scholar.
He met his future wife, Akshata Murty, while studying at Stanford.
What Was Rishi Sunak’s Career Before Politics?
Rishi Sunak worked as an analyst at the investment bank Goldman Sachs from 2001 to 2004. He then became a partner at 2 hedge funds, including The Children’s Investment Fund Management, before he was elected to Parliament.
Sunak married Akshata Murty in 2009. She is the daughter of N. R. Narayana Murthy, who co-founded the Indian technology company Infosys, and her shareholding in that company later became the couple’s main source of wealth.
How Did Rishi Sunak Rise Through UK Politics?
Rishi Sunak was first elected as the Member of Parliament for Richmond, Yorkshire, in 2015. He held junior ministerial roles under Prime Minister Theresa May before becoming Chief Secretary to the Treasury in 2019 under Boris Johnson.
In February 2020, Sunak became Chancellor of the Exchequer after Sajid Javid resigned. Within weeks, the COVID-19 pandemic forced him to design large-scale economic support programs, including a furlough scheme that paid a share of wages for employees unable to work, and the Eat Out to Help Out scheme, which subsidized restaurant meals. Supporters credited these programs with protecting jobs and businesses during lockdowns, while critics linked the dining scheme to a rise in COVID-19 cases later that year.
Sunak resigned as Chancellor in July 2022, a move that contributed to Boris Johnson’s resignation as Prime Minister soon after. He then ran for the Conservative Party leadership and lost to Liz Truss.
What Was the Controversy Over Rishi Sunak’s Wife’s Tax Status?
In April 2022, while Sunak was Chancellor, reports revealed that his wife, Akshata Murty, held non-domiciled tax status in the UK. That status let her avoid UK tax on income earned outside the country, including dividends from her Infosys shares.
The disclosure drew criticism, since Sunak was overseeing UK tax policy at the time. Murty announced she would give up the non-dom status and pay UK tax on her worldwide income. Around the same period, reports also revealed that Sunak had held a US green card for several years while serving as a UK government minister.
When Did Rishi Sunak Become Prime Minister?
Rishi Sunak became Prime Minister on October 25, 2022, after Liz Truss resigned following just 49 days in office. He won the Conservative leadership contest without a full vote among party members, after his main rivals withdrew from the race.
Why Did Rishi Sunak Lose the 2024 General Election?
Rishi Sunak called a general election for July 4, 2024, announcing the date outside 10 Downing Street in heavy rain. The Conservative Party suffered a historic defeat, and the Labour Party under Keir Starmer won a landslide majority.
Sunak resigned as Prime Minister on July 5, 2024, and Starmer succeeded him. Sunak kept his own seat, winning re-election in the newly drawn constituency of Richmond and Northallerton, even as his party lost seats across the country.
What Has Rishi Sunak Done Since Leaving Office?
Rishi Sunak briefly served as Leader of the Opposition after the election before stepping down as Conservative Party leader. Kemi Badenoch succeeded him as party leader in November 2024.
Sunak has remained the Member of Parliament for Richmond and Northallerton. He took an unpaid position at the University of Oxford’s Blavatnik School of Government and a visiting fellowship at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution. In July 2025, he rejoined Goldman Sachs as a senior advisor, directing his pay from that role to The Richmond Project, a numeracy charity he launched with his wife.
A 2026 book on the Conservative Party’s recent history claims that Kemi Badenoch discussed replacing Sunak as leader months before the 2024 election. Sunak has not publicly responded to that claim.
What Is Rishi Sunak’s Net Worth?
Rishi Sunak and his wife, Akshata Murty, have a combined net worth of about £640 million, according to the 2025 Sunday Times Rich List. Most of that wealth comes from Murty’s shareholding in Infosys, the Indian technology company her father co-founded.
Their wealth has fluctuated with Infosys’ share price. The Rich List put the couple’s fortune at £730 million in 2022, £529 million in 2023, and back up to around £640 million to £651 million in the 2024 and 2025 lists. The couple are the wealthiest family to have lived at 10 Downing Street, with a combined net worth higher than King Charles III’s.
Rishi Sunak FAQs
Is Rishi Sunak Still an MP?
Yes. Rishi Sunak remains the Member of Parliament for Richmond and Northallerton, a seat he has held continuously since 2015.
Who Succeeded Rishi Sunak as Conservative Leader?
Kemi Badenoch succeeded Rishi Sunak as leader of the Conservative Party in November 2024, after he stepped down following the party’s defeat in the 2024 general election.
Why Was Rishi Sunak’s Premiership Significant?
Rishi Sunak’s premiership was significant because he was the first British Asian and first Hindu Prime Minister, and the youngest to hold the office in more than 200 years. His time in office also included the UK’s response to a cost-of-living crisis and ended with one of the Conservative Party’s worst general election results.
Does Rishi Sunak Still Live in the UK?
Yes. Despite speculation that he would relocate to California after leaving Downing Street, Sunak said at the 2024 G20 summit that he intended to remain a UK Member of Parliament.