Taiwan's opposition Taiwan People's Party has accused the family of ruling-party politician Su Chiao-hui of illegally benefiting from a government grant, an attack the economics ministry flatly denies just as local election campaigning heats up.

• Three TPP candidates for New Taipei City council filed a criminal complaint asking prosecutors to investigate a ministry grant to an AI company.
• They named economics ministers past and present, accusing officials of steering money to a firm tied to the family of former premier Su Tseng-chang.
• The ministry said the former premier had already left office before the grant program started, so conflict-of-interest rules did not apply.
• It also said Su's daughter was not listed as a company representative or on the project team, and called the complaint baseless and a waste of court resources.

Outlook: Prosecutors will decide whether to open a case, but the fight looks set to run as campaign fuel through the local elections.