More Than Just the Richest PM: Here’s Everything Notable About UK's Rishi Sunak

The former chancellor broke records surrounding the top job, some of which have stayed unchallenged for 200 years.

At 42, Rishi Sunak became the youngest prime minister in modern political history when he took office on Tuesday, 25 October, after King Charles invited Sunak to form a government in the King's name.

He is also the richest prime minister in British history, even richer than the monarch himself.

Sunak finds himself taking over the reins from former PM Liz Truss, after he ended up as the only candidate who secured enough nominations to become leader of the Tory party and hence become the country's prime minister.

But the former chancellor of the exchequer broke several records surrounding the British premiership, some of which have remained unchallenged for over 200 years.

The Youngest With The Fastest Rise

The 42-year-old Sunak is just a year younger than what Tony Blair was in 1997, when taking over the premiership. David Cameron was 43 when he entered 10 Downing Street and had held the modern record till Sunak's ascent, as he was a few months younger than Blair.

Sunak, from no parliamentary post to prime minister, has also made one of the fastest rises in the UK’s modern era, being asked to move into 10 Downing Street just seven years after he was elected as a member of parliament (MP).

While former PM David Cameron came in at just nine years, the overall record is still held by William Pitt the Younger was the youngest, and made the rise within two years.  

First British Asian PM

Sunak is the first British PM of south Asian descent. Both Yashvir and Usha Sunak, Rishi Sunak’s parents come from Punjabi backgrounds, from Kenya and Tanzania.  

Rishi's paternal and maternal grandfathers were born in Punjab and later moved to east Africa. 

However, it has been incorrectly stated that Sunak is the UK’s first ethnic-minority PM, a title that actually belongs to Benjamin Disraeli, a Conservative of Jewish descent who was baptised into the Church of England.

First Hindu Premier 

After Sunak met King Charles, who invited him to form the government in the name of the King, Sunak became the first Hindu prime minister.

While Sunak seldom talks about his religion and beliefs, he has said that he is a practicing Hindu and refrains from consuming beef. Fittingly so, that Sunak was named prime minister on Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights. 

‘Huge Star Wars Fan’: First Millennial PM

Sunak is also the first millennial to become prime minister, born just five months into the 1980s. Social-media savvy and known for his love of gadgets and technology, Sunak is often seen flaunting a £180 smart mug, wearing designer suits and using the much-renowned Peleton exercise bike.

A self-confessed "huge Star Wars fan" with decent collection of lightsabers, Sunak had tweeted a photo of himself and his "Jedi Master" Sajid Javid, at a 2019 screening of The Rise of Skywalker. 

Richer Than the King

Sunak’s entry marks the first time in the British history that the residents of 10 Downing Street are richer than the monarch's family at Buckingham Palace.  Sunak and his wife Akshata Murthy sit on a combined fortune of roughly £730 million, almost double of the estimated £350 million wealth of King Charles III and Queen Consort, Camilla. 

Earlier this year, Sunak had become the first frontline politician to be included in the Sunday Times Rich List, which releases a list of the UK’s wealthiest people.

First PM from Yorkshire

Sunak will also be the first prime minister to represent a constituency in Yorkshire. Elected from Richmond, in North Yorkshire in 2015, which was previously held by infamous Tory leader, William Hague.

Previously, Harold Wilson had come close to occupying the PM’s post, but he went on to cross the divide by being appointed as PM from Huyton, in Lancashire.