British MP George Galloway has been accused once again of receiving kickbacks from Saddam Hussein's oil-for-food programme.
A UN-backed investigation alleged that he received more than 18 million barrels of oil both directly and indirectly and that 11 million were allocated in his name.
The report acknowledges the Respect MP's denial of involvement in the scheme and his insistence that he did not receive any proceeds from the oil sales. It cites "Iraqi oil officials" as the source of claims that the allocations were granted to fund Mr Galloway's anti-sanctions activities. The Bethnal Green and Bow MP, angrily denied the new allegations tonight.
"How many times must I repeat this: I've never had a penny through oil deals and no one has produced a shred of evidence that I have," he said. "I have never asked anyone to act for me - as Fawaz Zureikat, who is alleged to be my intermediary, has said repeatedly. Not least to this new inquiry. This is all a tissue of lies and a lie doesn't become a truth through repetition."
Mr Galloway said he had never even heard of the companies named in the report or met an oil trader named as a source. He also denied the allegation that his former wife Dr Amineh Abu-Zayyad had received more than 120,000 dollars through the scheme via a company called Delta Services.
Earlier this week a US Senate Committee accused Mr Galloway of lying about the oil allocations under oath. Republican Senator Norm Coleman claimed to have obtained new evidence proving that Saddam's regime granted allocations to the MP and his Mariam Appeal fund. His report also claimed to have discovered $150,000 worth of Iraqi oil money in his wife's bank account.
The new report found that half of the 4,500 companies in the UN oil-for-food programme, including Volvo and Daimler Chrysler, paid $1.8 billion dollars in kickbacks and illicit surcharges to Saddam Hussein's government.
Paul Volcker, who led the inquiry, said the corruption would not have been so pervasive had there been better discipline by UN management. He emphasised the need for wide-ranging UN reforms. It is the fifth and final report into the programme, which was set up to ease the effect of economic sanctions on Iraq following the invasion in Kuwait.