The political future of U.K. Treasury Minister Tulip Siddiq is in question as a coalition of anti-corruption charities calls for her resignation. The UK Anti-Corruption Coalition, which includes prominent groups like Oxfam and Transparency International, released a statement Monday night urging Siddiq to relinquish her responsibilities overseeing the country’s anti-corruption policies. The demand comes amid growing revelations about Siddiq’s connections to the recently ousted regime in Bangladesh, which was led by her aunt Sheikh Hasina.
Mounting Pressure Over Bangladesh Links
Siddiq, who serves as the Treasury minister in charge of both anti-corruption and financial services policy, has faced weeks of scrutiny following the collapse of her aunt’s government in Bangladesh last year. Reports have emerged that Siddiq lived in or owned properties that were paid for by allies of Hasina’s Awami League party, for whom Siddiq previously worked as a spokesperson.
In response to the allegations, Siddiq referred herself to Laurie Magnus, the prime minister’s independent adviser on ministerial interests, to investigate whether she breached the ministerial code of conduct. However, the anti-corruption coalition argues that Siddiq should step down from her economic crime and illicit finance role regardless of the probe’s outcome.
[Siddiq] currently has a serious conflict of interests. The Treasury minister is in charge of the UK’s framework on money laundering regulations and economic crime enforcement, while she also has direct family ties to a deposed regime that may be investigated under that framework.
UK Anti-Corruption Coalition statement
Concerning Connections Emerge
The controversy deepened over the weekend when former campaign posters for Siddiq were reportedly discovered in Hasina’s abandoned residence in Bangladesh. This is the latest in a series of revelations tying Siddiq and her family to properties and assets connected to the Awami League party’s inner circle during its time in power.
Despite the growing pressure, Siddiq maintains she has not engaged in any wrongdoing and voluntarily referred the matter to the ministerial interests adviser. Prime Minister Starmer’s office has also continued to express “full confidence” in Siddiq pending the investigation’s findings.
Urgent Decisions in the Balance
The anti-corruption coalition emphasized that Siddiq’s alleged conflict of interest puts her in an untenable position to make critical decisions related to her Treasury role at this time:
There are several urgent and important decisions for the international credibility and reputation of the UK which the government needs to make that currently fall within the minister’s current brief … It is not clear that the minister is now in a position to take these decisions given the conflict of interests that has arisen.
UK Anti-Corruption Coalition
As the investigation unfolds and new details come to light, Tulip Siddiq’s political future remains uncertain. The outcome could have significant ramifications not only for her career but for the U.K. government’s anti-corruption efforts and credibility on the global stage. For now, all eyes are on the ministerial interests adviser as he works to untangle the web of allegations and determine whether Siddiq’s Bangladesh ties constitute a breach of ministerial standards.
