Minister Tulip Siddiq caught up in Bangladesh court anti-corruption probe
Labour’s anti-corruption minister has been named in court documents detailing claims her family embezzled billions of pounds from a nuclear power project in Bangladesh.
Economic secretary Tulip Siddiq – who holds responsibility for financial crime and illicit finance – is alleged to have helped co-ordinate meetings with the Russian government regarding the Rooppur nuclear power plant project.
In a court writ seen by Sky News, submitted to the High Court Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh, Ms Siddiq is named alongside her aunt, the former prime minister of Bangladesh Shaikh Hasina.
The documents cite an online news report from August and suggest Ms Siddiq received embezzled funds that came from the artificial inflation of construction costs of the power plant – which was mainly funded by the Russian government.
It’s alleged that $5bn (£3.9bn) was siphoned off from the project’s budget “in collusion with Russian officials”.
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Ms Siddiq has been approached for a response.
The Labour Party and the government declined to comment.
It’s understood that the minister has not been approached by Bangladeshi authorities in relation to the allegations.
A party source suggested the accusations originated from a “spurious American aerospace website”.
Downing Street said Sir Keir Starmer had confidence in Ms Siddiq.
The legal claim has been made by Bobby Hajjaj, a political opponent of Hasina.
Hasina fled Bangladesh in August and resigned as prime minister after a total of twenty years in power.
Her departure followed weeks of deadly protests in the country and the new government has accused Hasina of multiple crimes while in office.
Ms Siddiq was photographed with Hasina in 2013 at a signing ceremony in the Kremlin alongside the Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Tulip Siddiq was pictured alongside Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina and Russian President Vladimir Putin during a 2013 visit to the Kremlin. Pic: AP
She was a councillor in the London Borough of Camden at the time.
The Associated Press quoted Russian news agencies reporting that Moscow planned to lend Bangladesh a total of $1.5bn (£1.2bn) to finance the building of nuclear power stations and to buy Russian arms.
The PM’s official spokesperson said Ms Siddiq had “denied any involvement in the claims” of embezzlement and continued to maintain her responsibility as a minister overseeing UK anti-corruption efforts.
Pressed about whether there was any conflict of interest in Ms Siddiq’s involvement in a 2013 Bangladeshi deal with Russia over a nuclear power plant and her ministerial role, the spokesman said: “I can’t speak to events that happened prior to a minister’s time in government.”
Sky News has approached the Bangladeshi Awami League Party – which Sheikh Hasina continues to lead – for comment.
A spokesperson for the party has been quoted saying the embezzlement claims are “fabricated”.
A new report suggests the UK Treasury is working to sell up to $7 billion worth of seized Bitcoin, but one person has slammed the report as “sensationalism” amid a crypto bull run.
Consumers will get stronger protections with a new water watchdog – as trust in water companies takes a record dive.
Environment Secretary Steve Reed will announce today that the government will set up the new water ombudsman with legal powers to resolve disputes, rather than the current voluntary system.
The watchdog will mean an expansion of the Consumer Council for Water’s (CCW) role and will bring the water sector into line with other utilities that have legally binding consumer watchdogs.
Consumers will then have a single point of contact for complaints.
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The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said the new watchdog would help “re-establish partnership” between water companies and consumers.
A survey by the CCW in May found trust in water companies had reached a new low, with fewer than two-thirds of people saying they provided value for money.
Just 35% said they thought charges from water companies were fair – even before the impact could be felt from a 26% increase in bills in April.
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‘We’ll be able to eliminate sewage spillages’
Mr Reed is planning a “root and branch reform” of the water industry – which he branded “absolutely broken” – that he will reveal alongside a major review of the sector today.
The review is expected to recommend the scrapping of water regulator Ofwat and the creation of a new one, to incorporate the work of the CCW.
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A water pollution protest by Surfers Against Sewage in Brighton
Campaigners and MPs have accused Ofwat of failing to hold water operators to account, while the companies complain a focus on keeping bills down has prevented appropriate infrastructure investment.
On Sunday, Mr Reed avoided answering whether he would get rid of Ofwat or not when asked on Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips.
He pledged to halve sewage pollution by water companies by 2030 and said Labour would eliminate unauthorised sewage spillages in a decade.
Mr Reed announced £104bn of private investment to help the government do that.
Victoria Atkins MP, shadow secretary of state for environment, food and rural Affairs, said: “While stronger consumer protections are welcome in principle, they are only one part of the serious long-term reforms the water sector needs.
“We all want the water system to improve, and honesty about the scale of the challenge is essential. Steve Reed must explain that bill payers are paying for the £104 billion investment plan. Ministers must also explain how replacing one quango with another is going to clean up our rivers and lakes.
“Public confidence in the water system will only be rebuilt through transparency, resilience, and delivery.”
Embedding human rights into crypto systems is a necessity. Self-custody, privacy-by-default, and censorship-resistant personhood must be core design principles for any technology. The future of digital freedom depends on it.
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