NatWest boss sensationally admits she WAS behind fake Nigel Farage Coutts story… but bank won’t sack her

THE boss of NatWest today sensationally confessed she was the source behind a false story about Nigel Farage.

But the bank’s board insisted they still have “full confidence” in Dame Alison Rose, despite her “unsatisfactory” role in the affair.

In a statement the top financier said: “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.”

Yesterday the BBC made a grovelling apology to former Brexit Party leader for pumping out Coutts’ incorrect spin that the elite bank had dropped him because he didn’t have enough money in his account.

But the broadcaster didn’t reveal Ms Rose was the source of the incorrect claim.

The Beeb’s Business Editor, Simon Jack, personally apologised for his false report.

BBC News CEO Deborah Turness also wrote to Mr Farage to say sorry.

In her statement today, Ms Rose continued: “Given the consequences of this, I want to address the questions that have been raised and set out the substance of the conversations that took place.

“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.

“I was not part of the decision-making process to exit Mr Farage. This decision was made by Coutts, and I was informed in April that this was for commercial reasons.  At the time of my conversations with Mr Jack, I was not in receipt of the contents of the Coutts Wealth Reputational Risk Committee materials subsequently released by Mr Farage.

“I have apologised to Mr Farage for the deeply inappropriate language contained in those papers and the Board has commissioned a full independent review into the decision and process to ensure that this cannot happen again.

“Put simply, I was wrong to respond to any question raised by the BBC about this case. 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.

“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.”

Natwest Chairman Howard Davies added: “The Board has noted Alison Rose’s statement on the circumstances of her conversation with Simon Jack and her further apology to Mr Farage.

“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.

“The Board is clear that the overall handling of the circumstances surrounding Mr Farage accounts has been unsatisfactory, with serious consequences for the bank. The Board will commission an independent review into the account closure arrangement at Coutts, and the lessons to be learnt from this.

“The findings of that review will be made public on completion. The Terms of Reference and lead firm will be announced shortly.”