British anti-corruption minister Tulip Siddiq, whose aunt is the former prime minister of Bangladesh who was accused of a major corruption scandal and was ousted, resigned while continuing to maintain his innocence.
Labor politician Tulip Siddiqui, who was appointed anti-corruption minister and city minister by Sir Keir Starmer's government last year, resigned on Tuesday. The news came just hours after she passed away. Named in Bangladesh corruption probeis investigating whether her family illegally acquired land during the rule of Siddique's aunt, Sheikh Hasina, who was Bangladesh's longest-serving prime minister until he was ousted in a coup last year.
The corruption spree follows long-standing allegations that Siddiq was using various expensive properties in London, including apartments and houses gifted or owned by his aunt's political allies. The announcement also follows a letter from the Prime Minister's Independent Adviser on Ministerial Standards published today. He said it was “unfortunate” that no “conclusive information” could be found about how the Siddiqui family came to own several properties in London.
The Minister's Standards Adviser also pointed to an “unfortunate misunderstanding” that had led to the public being “inadvertently misled” about the origin of ownership of the King's Cross flats. He said:
Given the nature of Ms Siddique's ministerial responsibilities, including the promotion of the UK's financial services sector and the inherent potential of the regulatory framework as a core element of the UK economy and its growth, it is clear that she has a strong commitment to this policy. It's a pity that I wasn't careful. the potential reputational risks to both her and the government arising from her immediate family's ties to Bangladesh; Although this shortcoming should not be interpreted as a violation of the Ministerial Act, it may be a good idea to consider her future responsibilities in light of this.
Siddique has previously distanced herself from allegations of ties to Bangladesh's autocratic former regime, saying she is a committed politician and has never discussed politics with her aunt, who is the premier of a Commonwealth state. he claimed. However, in the past few days, times of london revealed Mr Siddique's campaign documents were discovered in his aunt's abandoned palace in Dhaka, which was looted by rebels after he was ousted in a coup last year.
Mr Siddique relied heavily on a statement in his resignation letter on Tuesday afternoon that his actions did not breach the Ministerial Code, following instructions from the prime minister's ethics adviser. While insisting he had acted with full transparency, Mr Siddique admitted that “continuing in his role as Economic Secretary to the Treasury is likely to be a distraction from the work of government”. .
The Prime Minister, who is said to be a close friend of Mr Siddique, said he had accepted her resignation “with a heavy heart” and added: “I want to be clear that the door remains open to all of you.”
