The new chancellor continues his recent rapid rise that saw him only become a junior minister in 2018 and first enter the cabinet, as secretary of education, less than a year ago.
The key to the rise of the 55-year-old Stratford-upon-Avon MP is his period from 2020 to 2021 as undersecretary of state in the health department, or “vaccine minister”, in the abbreviation of ‘this work.
Zahawi earned great credit for the rapid initial deployment of Covid vaccines in the UK, something Boris Johnson regularly cited as one of the defining achievements of his time in office.
When the role ended, a reshuffle in the cabinet was inevitable, and in educational work Zahawi has once again been a solid minister and a good media interpreter, although someone whose reputation was inevitably helped to succeed the unfortunate Gavin Williamson.
In recent months there has been regular talk of Zahawi as one of Johnson’s aspiring successors, and he has a personal history that matches his obvious ambition.
Born in Baghdad to Iraqi Kurdish parents, Zahawi came to the UK at the age of nine, did not speak English, and has spoken eloquently of the prejudices he faced. Zahawi, co-founder of YouGov pollsters, has also earned considerable sums from the oil industry and is one of the UK’s richest MPs.
Some see his self-made status as an asset in what appears to be a likely battle to take over from Johnson, but he would also face scrutiny of his business career and many outside financial interests.