Nigel Farage is ready to sue Coutts’ owner NatWest after claiming the bank has treated him like a war criminal.
The former UKIPer ramped up his rhetoric this week after the bank’s chief executive apologised for “deeply inappropriate comments” made about him in official papers, saying she is “commissioning a full review of the Coutts’ processes” on bank account closures.
The closure of Mr Farage’s accounts sparked outrage among senior Tory MPs, with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak among those sharing concerns about the matter.
In a rapid turnaround, the Treasury announced on Thursday evening that UK banks would be subject to stricter rules over closing customers’ accounts, under changes designed to protect freedom of expression.
Farage, opening his show on GB News, praised the swift response from ministers but said questions remain for Dame Alison and NatWest.
He also accused her of being forced into an apology by the Treasury.
“In life it is always good to get an apology, so thank you Dame Alison for apologising. What I’ve actually been told quietly, privately, is that you were forced into doing this by the Treasury.
“But at least you’ve done it, I suppose. But the whole letter smacks of ‘not me, guv, I mean I’m just the chief executive, I mean, don’t blame me for what the banks under my direct control are doing’”.
He said that there were thousands in the same position as him, as he vowed to battle on.
“I’m afraid I can’t just walk away from this. I’ve started this, and I’ve got to continue. So thank you for the apology. It’s a start, but it’s no more than that.”
The bank, which closed Mr Farage’s account earlier this year, cited his retweet of a joke by comedian Ricky Gervais about trans women and his friendship with tennis player Novak Djokovic, who is opposed to Covid vaccinations, to flag concerns that he is “xenophobic and racist” in documents seen by MailOnline.
Dame Alison said: “Both freedom of expression and access to banking are fundamental to our society.
“It is not our policy to exit a customer on the basis of legally held political and personal views.
“Decisions to close an account are not taken lightly and involve a number of factors including commercial viability, reputational considerations and legal and regulatory requirements.
“I fully understand the public concern that the processes for bank account closure are not sufficiently transparent.
“Customers have a right to expect their bank to make consistent decisions against publicly available criteria.
“Those decisions should also be communicated clearly and openly with them, within the constraints imposed by the law.
“To achieve this, wider change is required. But the experience of clients highlighted in recent days has shown we need act now to put our processes under scrutiny.”
Related: Hitting new lows: Tory rating at lowest level since Liz Truss
