Keir Starmer faces MP grilling hours after Reeves hints at emergency spending cuts & scandal-hit Treasury minister quits

Following Treasury Minister Tulip Siddiq’s forced resignation due to a corruption scandal involving her family, Sir Keir Starmer is being grilled in the Commons today.

At Prime Minister’s Questions, the PM will face Kemi Badenoch, who has previously accused him of “dithering and delaying” in order to shield his friend.

When Sir Keir’s ethics adviser discovered that Ms. Siddiq had unintentionally deceived the public about an apartment given by an ally of her aunt, the former prime minister of Bangladesh, she abruptly resigned yesterday.

Following press reports casting doubt on the property’s provenance, Ms. Siddiq referred herself to the standards watchdog, prompting Sir Laurie Magnus to begin an eight-day investigation.

Just last week, the PM defended her, yet he saddenedly accepted her departure.

Sir Laurie Magnus, the head of ethics, had written to Sir Keir urging him to take into account her continuing obligations.

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He noted that it was unfortunate that Ms. Siddiq was unable to produce definitive proof that rules had been adhered to in relation to two properties that her aunt’s associates had given her and her sister.

In addition, Sir Laurie said that the Labour MP had unintentionally deceived the public about who owned a King’s Cross apartment.

Additionally, he mentioned a 2013 trip to Moscow for a signing ceremony for a nuclear power facility in Bangladesh—a transaction that is probably at the heart of a large-scale theft probe.

“Over the weekend, it became evident that the anti-corruption minister’s stance was totally unworkable,” stated Tory leader Kemi Badenoch. However, Keir Starmer hesitated and postponed protecting his close friend.

“Even now, as Bangladesh files a criminal case against Tulip Siddiq, he expresses ‘sadness’ at her inevitable resignation.”

This morning, Treasury Minister Darren Jones defended how the government handled the probe.

He maintained that the investigation demonstrated the effectiveness of an improved independent procedure for evaluating ministerial standards.

The BBC quoted him as saying: “What is clear is that our new independent process is working.”

Mr. Jones insisted that “there is no question of improper behavior on her part” and expressed his happiness at seeing Ms. Siddiq return to government.

He continued: “The Prime Minister has been clear the decision to step down was hers, and it was the right one under the circumstances.”