Ethics watchdog’s investigation into Rishi Sunak to be carried out without the extra powers Boris Johnson promised the office

• The prime minister’s ethics watchdog, Lord Geidt, is investigating the chancellor’s declarations of interest.
• But Geidt does not yet have the extra powers the PM previously promised to him, which include dedicated support from officials.
• Geidt’s investigation of Sunak will be under his original terms of reference without the new powers.

The investigation by the prime minister’s ethics watchdog into Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s declarations of interest are to be carried out without any of the new support or powers promised for the office by Boris Johnson.

Lord Geidt, the prime minister’s independent advisor on ministers’ interests, has begun an investigation into Sunak’s declarations of interest following a request made by the chancellor himself.

Geidt is to examine whether Sunak’s declarations since becoming a minister in 2018 were properly made. Sunak’s request came following a torrid week in which it was revealed that his wife, Akshata Murty, held non-domicile tax status, and that Sunak held a US green card while chancellor.

But Insider has established that Geidt’s probe into Sunak’s declarations will be carried out without any of the new support and powers that Johnson previously pledged for the office.

A Whitehall official, speaking anonymously in order to frankly discuss ongoing policy discussions, told Insider the investigation would be under the original terms of reference for Geidt’s role.

They said new terms of reference were in “draft shape” and “haven’t been confirmed” by the Cabinet Office.

Geidt’s probe into Sunak’s declarations would remain under the original terms of reference even if new ones were passed after the investigation has begun, the official said.

In letters exchanged between Geidt and Johnson in December, Johnson had pledged to give Geidt dedicated support from officials, and ensure that full support and attention were given to him during investigations.

Johnson promised this would be “in place to your satisfaction by the end of March at the latest.” But the government later delayed this deadline to Geidt’s annual report, due in April, leading to accusations they were prevaricating “long overdue” reform.

The opposition Labour party said the failure to provide the powers in time for the Sunak investigation suggests the original pledge by Johnson was a “hollow promise”.

Shadow cabinet office minister Fleur Anderson told Insider: “Once again, the Prime Minister has demonstrated he was never serious about his pledge to address the sleaze engulfing his Government. It was a hollow promise to deflect from media scrutiny.

“Never before has a Government ethics advisor been so busy. These are potentially very serious breaches of the rules by the Chancellor. We cannot see yet another whitewash.”

In the December letter, Johnson also referred to reports, including from the Committee on Standards in Public Life, calling for further empowerment of the watchdog role.

The committee had recommended the watchdog be made a statutory position and that the independent advisor be able to initiate investigations into breaches of the ministerial code.

Geidt said in his letter that he hoped to “be able to describe the role of Independent Adviser in terms of considerably greater authority, independence and effect” in his April annual report.

As of the end of March, “active and constructive discussions” were ongoing between the Cabinet Office and Geidt, an official told Insider.

Following the reports of Sunak’s green card and Murty’s non-domicile status, Murty said she would pay all UK tax on her foreign earnings in the future, and one senior Conservative MP told told Insider’s Catherine Neilan that Sunak’s political stock “collapsed through the floor.”

A government spokesperson told Insider: “The Chancellor provided a full list of all relevant interests when he first became a Minister in 2018, as required by the Ministerial Code. The Chancellor’s interests have been looked at by successive Independent Advisers since this time, but following recent interest he has asked for a further review of whether all interests have been properly declared in the interest of transparency and openness.”