Minister quits after lying about stolen phone conviction

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The Transport Secretary of the UK has stepped down following the disclosure of her previous conviction for providing false information to law enforcement, an incident that occurred shortly before her initial parliamentary election.

Louise Haigh submitted her resignation as Transport Secretary on Thursday evening after it emerged she had falsely reported a mobile phone as stolen when it was actually still in her possession.

Starmer made Louise Haigh a cabinet minister knowing full well about her fraud conviction which – yet again – the establishment and MSM hid from the public.
Only when he’s found out does he act.
After the Southport Massacre and his own family life, cover ups are the PM’s forte. pic.twitter.com/2xNQAL4fyk

— Dan Wootton (@danwootton) November 29, 2024

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The minister, notable primarily for her distinctive hair coloring during her brief tenure, had been a strong proponent of bringing the UK’s rail operations under state control. Despite previous unsuccessful attempts at railway nationalization in Britain, many supporters, particularly from the political left, remain convinced of its potential success.

Haigh’s resignation letter suggested unintentional wrongdoing, implying the legal issue stemmed from an error.

“I know you still have a huge contribution to make in the future,” wrote Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer in his response, notably avoiding any mention of the resignation’s underlying cause.

However, several British media outlets have presented information that seems to contradict Haigh’s version of events. Sky News revealed that in 2013, Haigh reported her company-issued Aviva phone as stolen. Her subsequent conviction for filing a false police report led to her termination from Aviva, casting doubt on whether the incident was merely accidental.

“Three separate sources claimed to Sky News that she made the false report to benefit personally, with two of the sources alleging she wanted a more modern work handset that was being rolled out to her colleagues at the time.”

The Times went further, stating: “The Times has been told that the company launched an investigation after Haigh said that company mobile phones had been stolen or had gone missing on repeated occasions. Aviva referred the matter to the police and Haigh was prosecuted in 2014.”

Keir Starmer bangs on about 'restoring trust', but in just 5 months…

Rachel Reeves has breached the ministerial code TWICE for lying on her CV and briefing the press before the budget, and now Louise Haigh for lying to the police.

This Labour gov't is not fit for office. pic.twitter.com/wbOep7A439

— Lee Harris (@addicted2newz) November 29, 2024

Haigh, who previously served as Policing Minister under Jeremy Corbyn and had been a Special Constable, never disclosed this incident publicly. She entered Parliament six months after her 2014 conviction. Senior party members learned of it during routine security screening when she joined Labour’s leadership team.

Prime Minister Starmer’s prior knowledge of the conviction has sparked criticism of his judgment. A Conservative Party spokesperson told The Daily Telegraph: “In her resignation letter, she states that Keir Starmer was already aware of the fraud conviction, which raises questions as to why the Prime Minister appointed Ms Haigh to Cabinet with responsibility for a £30bn budget? The onus is now on Keir Starmer to explain this obvious failure of judgement to the British public.”