NatWest Group boss Alison Rose tonight admitted she was the source of the BBC‘s incorrect story about Nigel Farage in his ‘de-banking’ row with Coutts.
In a statement released this evening, Dame Alison conceded she was ‘wrong’ to have discussed Mr Farage’s account with the BBC’s business editor Simon Jack.
She offered her ‘sincere apologies’ to Mr Farage, as well as saying sorry to the board of NatWest Group – which owns Coutts – and her colleagues.
Dame Alison has been under pressure after it emerged she sat next to Mr Jack at a charity dinner the night before the BBC wrongly reported Mr Farage was dropped as a Coutts customer due to a lack of wealth.
It has since been revealed how Mr Farage was ditched by Coutts due to his political views.
But the controversy does not seem to have threatened Dame Alison’s future at the beleaguered banking group.
NatWest Group chairman Sir Howard Davies this evening said the board ‘retains full confidence’ in Dame Alison as chief executive.
He also praised her as an ‘outstanding leader’ as he backed her to remain in post, although he suggested she could suffer a bonus or pay cut as a result of the scandal.
In his initial reaction this evening, Mr Farage said statements by both NatWest Group and the BBC were ‘contradictory’.
‘Someone is lying here,’ he posted on Twitter.
NatWest Group boss Alison Rose admitted she was the source of the BBC’s incorrect story about Nigel Farage in his ‘de-banking’ row with Coutts
In a statement released this evening, Dame Alison conceded she was ‘wrong’ to have discussed Mr Farage’s account with the BBC’s business editor Simon Jack.
Dame Alison’s public apology to Mr Farage comes a day after both the BBC and Mr Jack said sorry to the politician-turned-broadcaster.
Mr Jack admitted his report – which suggested Mr Farage had been dropped as a Coutts customer because he was no longer wealthy enough – was based on ‘incomplete and inaccurate’ information.
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This was despite it coming from a ‘trusted and senior source’, the BBC journalist added.
His apology followed Mr Farage’s efforts in securing a 40-page file from Coutts on why he was ‘cancelled’ as a customer.
It showed he lost his account because his views were ‘at odds’ with the bank’s ‘position as an inclusive organisation’.
The extraordinary documents cited Mr Farage’s retweet of a Ricky Gervais joke and his friendship with tennis star Novak Djokovic as it raised concerns he was ‘xenophobic and racist’.
It previously emerged how Mr Jack sat next to Dame Alison at a charity dinner at the five-star Langham Hotel – across from the BBC’s Broadcasting House – the night before the BBC published claims about Mr Farage’s wealth.
Dame Alison said in her statement tonight: ‘I recognise that in my conversations with Simon Jack of the BBC, I made a serious error of judgment in discussing Mr Farage’s relationship with the bank.
‘Believing it was public knowledge, I confirmed that Mr Farage was a Coutts customer and that he had been offered a NatWest bank account.
‘Alongside this, I repeated what Mr Farage had already stated, that the bank saw this as a commercial decision.
‘I would like to emphasise that in responding to Mr Jack’s questions I did not reveal any personal financial information about Mr Farage.
‘In response to a general question about eligibility criteria required to bank with Coutts and NatWest I said that guidance on both was publicly available on their websites.
‘In doing so, I recognise that I left Mr Jack with the impression that the decision to close Mr Farage’s accounts was solely a commercial one.’
NatWest Group chairman Sir Howard Davies said the board ‘retains full confidence’ in Dame Alison as chief executive, despite the scandal
Dame Alison’s public apology to Mr Farage comes a day after both the BBC and Mr Jack (pictured) said sorry to the politician-turned-broadcaster.
Mr Jack conceded that although the source of the story was ‘senior’ the information ‘turned out to be incomplete and inaccurate’
The BBC also posted a statement on its ‘Corrections and Clarifications’ website about its initial coverage of Mr Farage’s ‘de-banking’ row with Coutts
Dame Alison admitted she was ‘wrong to respond to any question raised by the BBC about this case’.
She also revealed she had apologised to Mr Farage for the ‘deeply inappropriate language’ contained in the 40-page Coutts file obtained by him.
‘I want to extend my sincere apologies to Mr Farage for the personal hurt this has caused him and I have written to him today,’ Dame Alison added.
‘I would like to say sorry to the Board and my colleagues. I started my career working for National Westminster Bank.
‘It is an institution I care about enormously and have always been proud to be a part of.
‘It has been the privilege of my career to lead the bank and I am grateful to the Board for entrusting me with this role.
‘It is therefore all the more regrettable that my actions have compounded an already difficult issue for the Group.’
Sir Howard said the NatWest Group board would commission an independent review of the closure of Mr Farage’s account with Coutts and would publish its findings.
He admitted the ‘overall handling of the circumstances surrounding Mr Farage accounts has been unsatisfactory, with serious consequences for the bank’.
But, offering his backing to Dame Alison, Sir Howard added: ‘As she recognises, she should not have spoken in the way she did.
‘This was a regrettable error of judgement on her part. The events will be taken into account in decisions on remuneration at the appropriate time.
‘However, after careful reflection the Board has concluded that it retains full confidence in Ms Rose as CEO of the bank.
‘She has proved, over the last 4 years to be an outstanding leader of the institution, as demonstrated by our results.
‘The Board therefore believes it is clearly in the interest of all the bank’s shareholders and customers that she continues in post.’
