Former UK prime minister David Cameron finds himself in the middle of piping hot soup as the Greensill Scandal continues to grow feet. In fresh updates, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has ordered a probe into his lobbying on behalf of the now collapsed Greensill Capital. The investigation will also look into the firm's engagement with the government. Reports also suggest the inquiry may have licence to recommend changes to lobbying regulations.
After a month-long silence on accusations of his involvement, Cameron finally spoke up with a 1,700-word statement on Sunday. The media has relentlessly published about his lobbying efforts for Greensill, and his correspondence to two junior ministers, senior civil servants, a No. 10 special adviser, and Chancellor Rishi Sunak himself. He said he accepted that he should have communicated “through only the most formal of channels” and there were “important lessons” to be learned.
He said he was “desperately sorry” for people affected by the collapse of the firm, and that he had approached ministers “not just because I thought it would benefit the company, but because I sincerely believed there would be a material benefit for UK businesses at a challenging time.” Cameron said he understood concern about the “ease of access and familiarity” in lobbying ministers via text message and email, but he argued he wanted to make his case quickly during the coronavirus crisis when Greensill had a “genuine and legitimate proposal to help.”
“As a former prime minister, I accept that communications with the government need to be done through only the most formal of channels, so there can be no room for misinterpretation,” he said. Several damning revelations have been made in the last few weeks. The most damning being Cameron's lobbying Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman soon after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. It has also emerged that he had directly lobbied Chancellor Rishi Sunak to give Greensill a role in the government's Covid-19 loan scheme, and approached Health Secretary Matt Hancock about the scheme in 2019. Reportedly, Cameron approached the Bank of England, and head of NHSX, Mathew Gould. He is also said to have lobbied financial secretary to the Treasury, Jesse Norman.
BoJo's independent review will be led by corporate lawyer Nigel Boardman. While a timescale has not been set, however, things are expected to move along quickly. Not just Cameron, Sunak faces a lot of heat as well as text messages reveal him telling the former PM that he had “pushed” Treasury officials to help Greensill participate in the multimillion-pound Covid-19 scheme. Media reports suggest the chancellor personally intervened to try and help the firm for Cameron. Around two months of negotiations took place between the second-most senior official in the Treasury and Greensill as they tried to find a way to accommodate them.
The Labour Party said the messages suggest Sunak may have broken the ministerial code and called for a “transparent and thorough investigation.” Shadow Chancellor Anneliese Dodds said, “They suggest that Greensill Capital got accelerated treatment and access to officials, and that the chancellor had pushed officials to consider Greensill's requests. The chancellor's decision to open the door to Greensill Capital has put public money at risk.
