Starmer is up in front of the Liaison Committee for his first annual grilling. Then he’s off to Chequers for the weekend….
Watch it here:
Former Spectator editor Fraser Nelson has announced he’s joining The Times as a weekly columnist after 13 years at the Daily Telegraph and 15 at the helm of the Spectator. Nelson said:
“After 13 amazing years at the Daily Telegraph and 15 editing The Spectator, I’m joining The Times as a columnist in the new year…I think of no greater honour than being a columnist for this newspaper – and no better time to be doing it.”
Co-conspirators can expect to see his first column in the paper in January. Not a surprising move…
Read Fraser’s full statement below:
Continue reading “Fraser Nelson Joins The Times as Weekly Columnist”
The government is feeling the heat over its anti-corruption minister Tulip Siddiq being investigated by the new Bangladeshi government over claims of embezzlement. At the Lobby briefing just now Downing Street says Keir has confidence in Siddiq: “The minister has denied any involvement; the minister has denied any allegations in the press.” Tulip has not been “formally contacted” by Bangladeshi authorities…
Starmer’s official spokesman then went on to say Tulip has not been involved in any decisions relating to Bangladesh since entering government, and the minister’s interests are declared and published where relevant. Downing Street added that the independent adviser “is content that for all ministers any actual or perceived interest have or are in the process of being resolved.” A smokescreen seeing as no one is asking about whether she has made decisions relating to Bangladesh since July…
The line is that Siddiq maintains “her ministerial role in flighting corruption on behalf of the Government.” For now…
Last month they were cut from 5%. After inflation rose to 2.6%, above target, the Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee has decided to hold rates there. As widely expected by markets…
The Bank says the MPC “voted by a majority of 6–3 to maintain Bank Rate at 4.75%. Three members preferred to reduce Bank Rate by 0.25 percentage points, to 4.5%.” Doveish enough…
The next decision will be on 6th February in the New Year. The Bank’s bulletin adds that “most indicators of UK near-term activity have declined. Bank staff expect GDP growth to have been weaker at the end of the year than projected in the November Monetary Policy Report.” Merry Christmas from Ms. Reeves…
Yesterday Guido was the first to reveal in the UK media that the Bangladeshi anti-corruption commission, the ACC, has formally launched a probe into ousted dictator Sheikh Hasina and her family. Hasina’s niece is Labour Treasury minister Tulip Siddiq…
A Bangladeshi High Court order states that the court approved the commencement of an investigation by a five-strong committee – led by ACC Deputy Director Md Salahuddin – into claims that around £4 billion had been embezzled by Hasina and her family from a Russian-funded nuclear power station mega project. Bangladeshi court documents name Tulip Siddiq herself. There are photos of Siddiq, aunt Hasina, and Vladimir Putin at the signing of such a deal in 2013…
According to allegations published in Bangladesh, 90% of the £10 billion value of the plant was paid by a Kremlin loan – of which £3.9 billion was allegedly embezzled by the Hasina family through Malaysian banks with help from Russian officials. Labour sources yesterday poured cold water on the whole thing by pointing out the claim originated “from a spurious American aerospace website.” The UK media class was too busy having Christmas parties, but now Guido’s report has been picked up by the BBC and splashed the Daily Mail – Tulip is in a very tricky spot…
The BBC reports the same allegations today: “Court documents seen by the BBC show Hajjaj accused Siddiq of mediating and coordinating meetings for the Bangladeshi officials with the Russian government to build the £10bn Rooppur Power Plant Project. It is claimed that the deal inflated the price of the plant by £1bn, according to the documents – 30% of which was allegedly distributed to Siddiq and other family members via a complex network of banks and overseas companies. In total, Hajjaj alleges £3.9bn was siphoned out of the project by Hasina’s family and minister. Footage from 2013 shows Siddiq attended the deal’s signing by Hasina and Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin, recorded by the Associated Press.” Poetically, Siddiq’s brief at HMT includes responsiblity for anti-corruption in the UK…
A major report by the new Bangladeshi government into the state of the economy as they have found it has been released. The government notes that “there exists a robust nexus among civil bureaucracy, contractors, and politicians that facilitates the embezzlement of public funds for personal gain. This alliance is a fundamental driver of corruption and must be prioritised for disruption at the national level.” It estimates the magnitude of corruption ranges from USD 14 billion to 24 billion out of the USD 60 billion invested in various development projects over the past 15 years. With regard to embezzlement there is a clear statement of intent:
“It has been widely suggested that many bribes and extortions occur abroad, leading to substantial sums of money being transferred out of the country to evade detection by various agencies. Public servants, who are often at the heart of these corruption schemes, have shown reluctance to declare their assets to the government. However, increased public pressure for transparency has prompted businesses, civil servants, and politicians to seek safe havens for concealing their corrupt funds.
Countries such as Canada, the USA, UAE, Singapore, and the UK are frequently criticised for providing such havens. Many corruption payments are made overseas to avoid scrutiny by government agencies. Therefore, it is essential that government officials, project directors, and ministers be subjected to public scrutiny regarding their wealth held abroad, whether in their names or under the names of family members.”
There is no comment from Labour on the new formal government inquiry, and no comment from Tulip Siddiq on the allegations despite multiple approaches. A Labour spokesman only comments on the photo with Putin – ‘This event was 11 years ago before Tulip was an MP. Tulip only went to Russia to see her aunt and spend time with her family. She had no role at any events she attended beyond being a family member.” Co-conspirators will remember that Hasina left in a hurry – doomed dictatorships without time to prepare leave troves of documents behind. Will Keir Starmer allow Siddiq to continue in her brief as corruption minister while being officially investigated by the Bangladeshi government for corruption?
And despite an odd silence from the Tories on the matter, insiders are noting that Siddiq’s majority in Hampstead and Kilburn is 13,970. Some lefty independents will have eyes on that…
As Guido revealed earlier this month, ex-Tory leadership contender Robert Jenrick has officially debuted his first GB News segment—a tightly packed six-minute piece laser-focused on crime. True to form, Jenrick takes aim at the “broken” justice system, bemoaning a police force losing officers “in frustration.” Putting his new role as shadow justice secretary to good use…
Behind the scenes, Jenrick’s been in talks with GB News top brass about the frequency and focus of potential future segments. With the broadcaster undergoing a pre-Christmas shakeup of its roster, Jenrick could be a new friendly face on the People’s Channel…
Former leader of the SNP in Westminster Ian Blackford told Times Radio why he believes Nicola Sturgeon’s claim that she spent no time in the kitchen and therefore didn’t see any of her husband’s purchases:
“She doesn’t have a passion for cooking.”