Closing summary: Farage controversy rumbles on after NatWest chief resigns
The controversy over the closure of Nigel Farage’s Coutts bank account has done for Alison Rose, who resigned as NatWest chief executive after admitting she discussed the case with a BBC reporter. Yet it appears the discomfort for NatWest Bank is not over.
The information commissioner has said he will look into a complaint, following media reports of NatWest Bank sharing personal financial information about Nigel Farage with the BBC.
And some shareholders have – anonymously, so far – suggested that the bank’s long-serving chair, Howard Davies, may also need to go.
For his part, Farage, the former right-wing politician turned broadcaster, has called for the whole board of NatWest to be replaced, plus the chief executive of its Coutts subsidiary (while praising the government for intervening on Tuesday night shortly before Rose’s resignation).
Even if replacing the whole board is unlikely, the forced departure of a FTSE 100 chief executive is undoubtedly a major moment.
In other business news today:
Shares in Rolls-Royce have risen to their highest since the start of the coronavirus pandemic after it surprised investors with a big jump in expected profits on the back of high demand in its jet engine and defence businesses.
Heathrow airport has said it remains loss-making despite having some of its busiest days on record during the first half of the year as travel demand continued to bounce back from the Covid crisis.
ChatGPT developer OpenAI, Anthropic, Microsoft and Google, the owner of the UK-based DeepMind, four of the most influential companies in artificial intelligence, have announced the formation of an industry body to oversee safe development of the most advanced models.
The online health and beauty retail platform THG has emerged as the unlikely possible buyer of struggling London the free newspaper City AM.
Energy suppliers could be forced to keep customer service lines open on evenings and weekends this winter under rules proposed by the regulator for Great Britain to help struggling customers.
You can continue to follow our live coverage from around the world universe:
In UK politics, Rishi Sunak appears at infected blood inquiry amid criticism over government compensation delays
In extraterrestrial news, the US Congress is to examine claims government is harboring alien space craft
In the US, Republicans expected to roast homeland security secretary Alejandro Mayorkas in House hearing as they edge towards impeachment
In our coverage of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the EU is to ban exports of battlefield equipment to Belarus, and Ukraine will spend $1bn making drones
Thanks as ever for following our coverage on the live blog today, and please do join the inimitable Graeme Wearden for more tomorrow morning. JJ
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has also written to the main British banking lobby group, UK Finance, to “remind them of responsibilities on information they hold”, it said.
Banks have a duty to uphold data protection laws while holding large amounts of sensitive information, the ICO said.
John Edwards, the UK’s information commissioner, said:
I have written to the banks today to remind them of their responsibilities to the public. Banks should not be holding inaccurate information, they should not be using information in a way that is unduly unexpected, and they should not be holding any more information than is necessary.
Even the information banks gather around politically exposed persons must follow the law. We are working with HM Treasury, who set the rules in this area, and with the Financial Conduct Authority, who oversee those rules.
