Sir Keir Starmer refused to speak out in support of Nigel Farage. Photo: UK PARLIAMENT/AFP via Getty Images
Sir Keir Starmer declined to speak out in support of Nigel Farage due to the apparent political closure of his bank account.
The Labor leader's spokesman said the situation was “under discussion” and commenting was inappropriate.
It was revealed on Tuesday that the former Ukip leader's bank accounts were closed after Coutts decided his views were “not in line with our values.”
The bank's reputational risk committee “fired” him after reviewing a dossier detailing his Brexit comments, his friendship with Donald Trump and views on LGBT rights, among many reasons he was not “compatible with Coutts.”
The background paper cited Mr. Farage's support for Novak Djokovic, the former Wimbledon champion, as evidence that he was not as “inclusive” as the bank.
with Djokovic being cited as evidence that he is “not inclusive”;
Asked if Sir Keir found it unacceptable for a private bank to close an individual's account because of his political views, his spokesman said, “I think it's fair to say that we simply don't have enough information at this stage.” When asked again, the spokesman said, “We don't know if that's the case. Obviously, banks should have certain powers when it comes to money laundering, terrorism and so on. Without knowing the details of this case, I'm not going to speculate about what happened.”
This came after another leader of the Labor Party refused to speak out in support of Mr. Farage in connection with the apparent closure of his bank account for political reasons.
Alex Norris, the shadow minister for leveling up, said it was too early to draw any conclusions until an investigation was carried out.
Mr. Norris was asked on Talk TV if it was acceptable for a private bank to close an individual's account because of his political views.
He replied: “We are still working out the details of this case. I didn't know much until I saw what everyone saw overnight.
“I can't comment on a person's banking situation, but I know that if someone is unhappy with the way they are being treated at this bank – and I have these issues in my constituency – the regulator is there, they should take the support of the regulator and they will see if the bank is doing the way they should.”
Coutts stated that the values 'do not match' Photo: Future Publishing
Questioned by presenter Julia Hartley-Brewer, he said: “We can't be in a situation where people can't have access to banking services – everyone who has legitimate sources of income, and I don't think that's what we're talking about here, should have access to their own money, put it somewhere.”
When asked why he wasn't commenting on a “serious attack on our freedom of speech,” Mr Norris said: facts.
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“I think the regulator really needs to decide if this happened. I worry every day about inflation for my constituents.”
Ms. Hartley-Brewer replied, “Free speech matters. We wouldn't be in the mess we're in if we had more.”
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