Anti-corruption minister refers herself to standards watchdog & faces calls to resign over London flat allegations
ANTI-CORRUPTION Minister Tulip Siddiq is under investigation for corruption in two different countries.
The Treasury Minister has referred herself to the sleaze watchdog amid allegations around properties linked to her family.
The Treasury Minister’s property affairs will be probed by the ethics czar after it emerged her apartment was a gift to her family from a close ally of her despot aunt’s political party in Bangladesh.
Sir Keir Starmer insisted today he still had full confidence in his City Minister after mounting calls for an inquiry to be launched.
It comes after it emerged last month that she had been interviewed by the Cabinet Office following allegations of embezzlement by relatives.
Siddiq has been quizzed by officials over claims herself and family members embezzled £4 billion through a nuclear plant deal in the country – claims she totally refutes.
The Anti-Corruption Commission in Bangladesh is looking into Siddiq and her family after being ordered to by the country’s high court.
She was alleged to have been involved in brokering a deal back in 2013 with Russia for the power plant in Bangladesh in which large sums of cash are said to have been embezzled.
Siddiq had been due to join the Treasury and Chancellor Rachel Reeves as part of a delegation heading to China this week but will now remain in the UK to assist the inquiry.
The Prime Minister said that Siddiq has “acted entirely properly” over the use of the property. Independent adviser Sir Laurie Magnus will now decide whether she broke strict ethics rules.
Her aunt is senior politician Sheikh Hasina Wazed who was kicked out as Bangladeshi PM in August last year after 15 years in power and has now fled to India.
Ms Siddiq’s decision to refer herself to the ministerial standards watchdog comes after the Sunday Times and Financial Times both reported she had lived in properties linked to her aunt’s regime.
The Sunday Times said she had used a flat in Hampstead, north London, which had been given to her teenage sister by lawyer Moin Ghani, who had represented the Hasina administration.
The Financial Times also revealed she had also used an apartment in King’s Cross given to her by Abdul Motalif, another associate of members of the Awami League party in Bangladesh.
Sir Keir made the announcement as he delivered a speech on reforms to the NHS in Surrey earlier today.
The PM said: “Tulip Siddiq has acted entirely properly by referring herself to the independent adviser, as she’s now done, and that’s why we brought into being the new code.
“It’s to allow ministers to ask the adviser to establish the facts, and yes, I’ve got confidence in her, and that’s the process that will now be happening.”
One of Siddiq’s roles in government is tackling corruption within the UK financial sector.
But she has written to ministerial standards watchdog Sir Laurie Magnus insisting she has done “nothing wrong”.
She told him: “In recent weeks I have been the subject of media reporting, much of it inaccurate, about my financial affairs and my family’s links to the former government of Bangladesh.
“I am clear that I have done nothing wrong. However, for the avoidance of doubt, I would like you to independently establish the facts about these matters.
“I will obviously ensure you have all the information you need to do this.”
But Shadow home office minister Matt Vickers said: “It is disappointing that Keir Starmer has allowed scandal in his government to overshadow today’s announcement.
“There are clear questions for his friend and anti-corruption minister Tulip Siddiq to answer about allegations made about her.
“She must be held to the same standards as other ministers in his government, indications so far show that that may not be the case.”
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp had called on the PM to remove her role as anti-corruption until the questions had been answered.