Can we trust our banks to do the right thing?

Dame Alison Rose resigns as CEO of NatWest immediately, after admitting that she leaked private banking information about former Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage to inaccurate BBC story by their business editor Simon Jack about the decision to close Mr Farage’s accounts with Coutts, a NatWest subsidiary. Farage raised concerns in April that decision to close his account was politically motivated and accused the boss of Coutts of being “sleep at the wheel” throughout the scandal over its decision to “de-bank” him because of his political views. Banks cannot pick and choose customers for their politics and more important personal data have been compromised.

Directors of the taxpayer-backed lender were in deep serious discussion and implied Dame Alison’s position was untenable in the wake of briefings by Downing Street that she had lost the confidence of the Prime Minister and chancellor. NatWest is 39 per cent owned by British taxpapayers declined to comment.

A personal intervention from the Prime Minister ensured a hastily-arranged board conference call,  and Dame Alison Rose’s fate was decided  after the government sided with the hard-right populist over is claims he had been punished for his political views. Before her clash Rose (53), was awarded a Damehood from King Charles, the most notable client of Coutts. Sunak’s spokesperson said after she fell on her sword “ the Prime minister was concerned about the unfolding situation. Alison Rose had done the right thing in resigning”. In 2008 the state became NatWest’s largest shareholder after the lender’s £45.5bn taxpayer bailout. Rose resigned two days before the bank’s second-quarter earnings release. Rose was facing one of the ruthless British political operators in recent history, who seven years ago brought down a sitting prime minister- David Cameron – over Brexit. The row began on June 20, when Farage revealed his bank accounts with an unnamed “ prestigious institution” were being closed in a case of serious political persecution which the BBC reported on July 4 that the real reason Coutts was shutting his account was that he had fallen below its £1million borrowing limit.