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UK City minister Tulip Siddiq has referred herself to the government’s adviser on ministerial standards over her property holdings, Sir Keir Starmer disclosed on Monday.
The UK Prime Minister said at a press conference on Monday that the minister had “acted entirely properly” by going to Sir Laurie Magnus in light of reporting about links between her properties and the ousted Bangladeshi government.
The FT revealed on Friday that Siddiq became the owner of a two-bedroom flat near King’s Cross in 2004 without paying for it.
The property had been purchased three years earlier for £195,000 by Abdul Motalif, a developer with links to senior figures in the Awami League, the Bangladeshi party led by Sheikh Hasina, Siddiq’s aunt and the country’s former prime minister.
Siddiq, who has responsibility for fighting corruption, has lived in multiple properties linked to her aunt. Sheikh Hasina and her party have been accused of siphoning funds from the country’s banking system, although they deny the claims.
Starmer said of Siddiq: “I’ve got confidence in her and that the process that will now be happening”, adding that the Labour government’s new ministerial code was “to allow ministers to ask the adviser to establish the facts”.
In her letter to Magnus, Siddiq said she had “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.”
“For the avoidance of doubt,” she added. “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.”
The government confirmed on Monday that Siddiq would no longer be accompanying UK chancellor Rachel Reeves on a trip to China scheduled for this week.
A government official said: “Tulip wants to be in the UK so she is available to assist the Independent Adviser on Ministerial Standards.”
Over the weekend, the Sunday Times reported that Siddiq had lived at a different property in Hampstead that had been transferred to her sister by Moin Ghani, now a prominent lawyer who has represented the Bangladesh government led by the Awami League.
People with knowledge of Siddiq’s position confirmed her living arrangements.