Labour MP investigated for failing to register Rental Income

Parliament’s standards watchdog is investigating Labour Treasury Minister Tulip Siddiq for failing to register income on a London property.

It is the first such inquiry since the election.

It followed a probe which revealed Ms Siddiq had failed to declare income from a London rental property for over a year.

The inquiry is believed to relate to Ms Siddiq’s failure to register rental income from a property in London, which a Labour spokesman said was “an administrative oversight” for which she had apologised.

The spokesman said: “Tulip will co-operate fully with the Parliamentary Commissioner on Standards on this matter.”

Ms Siddiq is the first MP of the new Parliament to be placed under investigation by the Standards Commissioner.

Earlier in July 2024, she apologised after breaking MP rules over her financial interests.

Sir Keir Starmer has repeatedly vowed to beef up integrity in public life.

The Prime Minister said: “People falling short of the required standards will face consequences, as you would expect.”

A Labour spokesperson said: “This was an administrative oversight which was declared with the Commons registrar and Tulip apologised as soon as she was made aware of the issue.”

Tulip Siddiq is the niece of Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who introduced a quota system for government jobs.

The controversial decision sparked widespread riots, with over 200 people killed, at least 2,500 arbitrarily arrested and around 61,000 protesters named as accused persons in the cases.

Ms Siddiq made a name for herself campaigning for the release of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe from Iran but was criticised for staying silent on human rights abuses in Bangladesh.

In 2023, the Commissioner put MPs on notice over late registration of interests, telling them it “undermines the registration system. Members are personally responsible for timely registration. Future breaches will be investigated and reported for sanction”.

Investigations into three former MPs which began during the last Parliament remain open.

Former Conservative MP Bob Stewart is being investigated for failing to declare an interest and an alleged lack of cooperation with the watchdog’s inquiry.

Ex-Tory and Reclaim MP Andrew Bridgen is being investigated over the registration of his interests, while former Tory Sir Conor Burns is being investigated for the use of information received in confidence.

During the last Parliament, the Standards Commissioner opened more than 100 investigations into MPs, the majority of which were resolved by ‘rectification’ – a procedure that allows MPs to correct minor or inadvertent breaches of Commons rules.