The Ties That Constrict

British Treasury Minister Tulip Siddiq resigned this week after weeks of scrutiny over her alleged ties to her aunt, ousted Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, with authorities in the South Asian country launching an anti-corruption probe against the former leader and her allies, the BBC reported.

Hasina, who led Bangladesh for over a decade, was deposed in 2024 for her increasingly authoritarian tactics and also allegations of far-ranging corruption. The interim government, headed by Nobel laureate economist Muhammad Yunus, has launched investigations into claims that senior officials from Hasina’s administration funneled public funds to acquire overseas properties.

In recent weeks, Bangladeshi authorities named Siddiq in these investigations, alleging that she benefited from such schemes, including a London flat gifted by a developer in 2004 with ties to the Hasina’s Awami League. She had initially said she received the property from her parents.

The former minister has also been accused of helping Hasina broker a deal with Russia for a nuclear power plant to be built at an inflated cost.

Siddiq denies the allegations and asked the United Kingdom Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s standards adviser, Sir Laurie Magnus, to conduct an investigation. Magnus concluded that there was no evidence of financial impropriety or breaches of the ministerial code.

However, he criticized Siddiq for failing to recognize the reputational risks posed by her ties to Hasina, who fled Bangladesh in August 2024 following mass anti-government protests, Politico noted.

In her resignation letter, Siddiq said she stepped down to prevent the matter from becoming a distraction for the government. Starmer accepted her resignation “with sadness,” reiterating that the investigation found no breach of the ministerial code.

Emma Reynolds, a lawmaker of the ruling Labour Party, has been appointed as her replacement.

Meanwhile, the resignation has drawn sharp reactions.

Conservative party leader Kemi Badenoch criticized Starmer’s handling of the issue, calling it “weak leadership,” and claimed Siddiq’s position had been untenable for weeks.

In Bangladesh, Yunus suggested Siddiq might have unknowingly benefited from “plain robbery,” while urging accountability.

Siddiq’s resignation marks the second ministerial exit from Starmer’s government in two months, potentially denting public confidence in Labour’s governance. The Labour Party won the elections last year in a landslide.