MPs threaten “formal powers” to demand publication of leaked RBS report

Nicky Morgan, chairwoman of the Treasury select committee, has taken another step to further ratchet up the pressure on the Financial Conduct Authority and Royal Bank of Scotland to disclose in full the watchdog’s now notorious leaked report into the conduct of RBS’s former small business banking division.

The MP has written to Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) chief executive Andrew Bailey proposing to appoint Andrew Green QC as an independent legal adviser to compare the regulator’s impending summary with the underlying report into the scandal at RBS’S controversial restructuring unit.

The move follows last month’s news that the FCA has refused to publish in full its leaked report into the scandal at RBS’s now defunct GRG as it would risk revealing confidential information.

That decision came after the report, which the BBC said accuses RBS of mistreating businesses – claims the bank denies – was seen by the broadcaster.

The leak prompted Ms Morgan to demand its full release to the public.

While Ms Morgan said the case to publish the full report was now “overwhelming”, the watchdog has insisted that it will only publish a summary of the report’s findings, verified by external lawyers.

Last month it was also reported that City of London law firm Lexlaw has organised a data request Under the DPA 1998.

The firm believes former RBS business customers mentioned in the report have a legal right under the act to be given any personal information contained in it and that, as the data controller, the FCA is legally obliged to hand it over.

Under the DPA 1998, individuals, as “data subjects”, can make a “subject access request” for all personal data that organisations hold about them on their systems. The act covers sole traders as well as individual directors, officers and employees of companies.

Reacting to the request, the regulator said at the time: “We receive many DPA requests each year. We generally release any information once the formal process is completed but we comply with DPA rules.” He reiterated the FCA’s intention to release a detailed summary of the report “soon”.

Ms Morgan’s calls for full disclosure of the report has also been joined by a group of cross-party MPs who condemned RBS’s treatment of business customers as an “ugly stain” on the UK financial services industry.

Commenting on her latest intervention, Ms Morgan said: “The committee wants the maximum possible transparency to be brought to this long-standing issue. With that in mind, it has proposed an arrangement under which it appoints an independent legal adviser to provide assurances that the FCA’S ‘summary’ closely reflects the underlying GRG (Global Restructuring Group) report.

“If the FCA declines this proposal, or if the legal adviser cannot provide the committee with the assurances it needs, the committee may use its formal powers to require the FCA to produce the report.”