British Conservative politician Nigel Lawson, finance minister in Margaret Thatcher’s government and architect of her controversial tax policy, has died aged 91, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said.
Nigel Lawson, a respected figure on the right in the UK, rose to prominence in the 1980s when, as Thatcher’s Chancellor of the Exchequer for six years (1983-1989), he launched a tax cut programme.
He is still considered today the most important member of Thatcher’s cabinet and one of the decisive figures of the ultra-liberal revolution of the 1980s.
“One of the first things I did as chancellor was hang a picture of Nigel Lawson above the table,” Rishi Sunak wrote on Twitter announcing the news of Nigel Lawson’s death.
One of the first things I did as Chancellor was to hang a picture of Nigel Lawson above my desk.
He was a transformative chancellor and an inspiration to me and many others.
My thoughts are with his family and friends at this time. pic.twitter.com/SPwcnoUFnQ
-Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) April 3, 2023
“He was a transformative chancellor [do Tesouro do país] and an inspiration to me and many others,” the prime minister said.
Tax cuts promoted by Nigel Lawson caused an economic boom, although they are also believed to have been behind the registered inflation.
However, disagreements with Margaret Thatcher over economic policy eventually led to his departure from government, where he was also Minister for Energy and Secretary to the Treasury.
Some time later, he positioned himself in favor of the United Kingdom leaving the European Union, presiding over the pro-Brexit campaign.
Nigel Lawson has also been noted in recent years for denying climate change, a subject on which he has published books.
Nigel Lawson had six children and one of them, Nigela, surpassed her father in popularity with the younger generation by becoming a prestigious chef and television star.
Source: TSF
