Conservative MP Dame Harriett Baldwin has accused Labour of becoming a “laughing stock around the world” following the resignation of Treasury minister Tulip Siddiq, amid a “corruption” scandal.
Speaking to GB News, Baldwin said Siddiq “had to go” from her position as anti-corruption minister due to her connections with the former Bangladeshi government.
The Labour MP stepped down from her role as Economic Secretary to the Treasury today, telling Sir Keir Starmer she had become “a distraction” from the Government’s work.
Siddiq had been under scrutiny over allegations about properties linked to a relative’s political movement in Bangladesh, including flats in London that Baldwin said “no one could quite understand why” she had received.
Dame Harriet Baldwin has branded Labour a ‘laughing stock’ following Tulip Siddiq’s resignation
GB News / Parliament TV / Tulip Siddiq
In her resignation letter, Siddiq noted that Sir Laurie Magnus, the independent adviser on ministerial standards, found “no evidence to suggest that I have acted improperly in relation to the properties I have owned or lived in”.
In his response to Siddiq’s resignation, Sir Keir Starmer indicated that the “door remains open” for her to return to Government.
Discussing the resignation on GB News, Baldwin emphasised the “untenable” nature of Siddiq’s position, noting her absence from Treasury proceedings earlier today.
Baldwin told host Martin Daubney: “She had to go. She wasn’t there this afternoon, sitting by the Chancellor’s side and all the other Treasury ministers were.
Tulip Siddiq has resigned from her role as Treasury minister
PA
“She’s now being investigated for a second corruption investigation by the Bangladeshi government, and clearly the situation was untenable.”
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Hitting out at Labour, Baldwin claimed that the British Government has become a “laughing stock around the world” as a result of Siddiq’s resignation.
She stated: “To have her in the role of anti-corruption minister just made us a laughing stock around the world, so she had to go.”
When questioned by Martin on who will replace Siddiq in the Treasury, Baldwin explained that there will be a “reshuffle” as opposed to a “by-election”, as she has not resigned fully as an MP.
Baldwin told GB News: “It will trigger a reshuffle – she’s not resigning as an MP, she’s resigning as a minister – that would be a choice she would make.
Baldwin told GB News she was ‘glad’ to see Siddiq resign from Government
GB News
“But also, I think the rules on a recall of MPs does take some time, and you have to have been convicted of something before they can start a recall in your constituency. So that would be more of a slow burn, but she had to go as a minister and I’m glad to hear that she has.”
The Labour MP had reportedly received an apartment in King’s Cross in 2004 from Abdul Motalif, an associate of Bangladesh’s Awami League party.
Sir Laurie said he had not identified evidence of improprieties, but noted it was “regrettable that she was not more alert to the potential reputational risks”.
Liberal Democrats’ Cabinet Office spokeswoman Sarah Olney welcomed the resignation, stating: “It’s right Tulip Siddiq resigned, you can’t have an anti-corruption minister mired in a corruption scandal.”
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