UK Treasury confirms inquiry into pre-budget bank-tax leak
Treasury official James Bowler says the Government Security Group is investigating after a report on the proposed tax appeared before the budget.
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Treasury official James Bowler says the Government Security Group is investigating after a report on the proposed tax appeared before the budget.
The UK Treasury has confirmed that the Government Security Group is investigating a pre-budget leak about a proposed tax on banks. Treasury permanent secretary James Bowler confirmed the inquiry in a reply published by the Commons Treasury Committee on 10 November.
The inquiry follows a Bloomberg story published on budget morning saying the proposed tax would be less onerous than the City had assumed. The Guardian said the story had an immediate impact on bank share prices, which rose.
Committee chair Meg Hillier had asked for confirmation of an inquiry, describing the Bloomberg story as more than idle speculation. She said she suspected the investigation would find no evidence of a breach and produce more assurances about security.
Hillier said the Treasury still needed to explain how information likely to affect bank share prices circulated in newsrooms before it was given to lawmakers. She said she would press the chancellor for answers at a committee appearance scheduled for the afternoon of 11 November.
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