Siddiq quits as minister after inquiry into property

Labour MP steps aside amid allegations over links to Bangladesh

- Rowena Mason, Kiran Stacey, Peter Walker

Tulip Siddiq resigned as a Treasury minister yesterday after accepting that the government was being harmed by the furore over her close ties to her aunt, the ousted prime minister of Bangladesh now accused of corruption.

Siddiq, who was the City and anticorruption minister, stepped aside after an investigation by Laurie Magnus, the adviser on ministerial standards, into her use of properties given to her and her family by allies of the regime of Sheikh Hasina.

She was not deemed by Magnus to have broken any rules over her use of the homes and he found no evidence to suggest that any of Siddiq's assets were derived from anything other than legitimate means.

The inquiry also looked at her presence at the signing of a 2013 nuclear deal between her aunt and Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, in Moscow. The adviser accepted her explanation that she had been there only socially and as a tourist.

However, Magnus also said a lack of records and lapse of time meant that he had "not been able to obtain comprehensive comfort in relation to all the UK property-related matters referred to in the media".

Siddiq could have been more alive to the reputational risks arising from her family's ties to Bangladesh, added Magnus, who suggested the prime minister would want to consider her ongoing responsibilities.

Following his conclusions, Siddiq resigned yesterday saying that she had fully declared all her financial interests and relationships but it was clear that the situation had become a distraction for the government.