Labour demands inquiry over reports David Cameron lobbied Chancellor for Covid loans for bank

Labour is demanding an inquiry is launched following reports David Cameron lobbied Rishi Sunak to grant millions of pounds in loans to a finance company he was advising.

The Sunday Times claims the former Prime Minister sent a number of texts to the Chancellor's private phone asking for support for Greensill through the UK Government's Covid Corporate Financing Facility.

According to the paper, most of the messages were unanswered and the company eventually went bust after its loan application was rejected.

It said Mr Sunak was understood to have stood by officials who felt the company did not qualify for the scheme.

Labour has called for an inquiry into reports David Cameron lobbied Rishi Sunak to grant millions of pounds in loans to a finance company he was advising. Picture: Jacob King/PA Wire.

He was said to have referred Mr Cameron to senior officials at the Treasury.

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Those contacted by the former premier were said to include Tom Scholar, the permanent secretary, and Charles Roxburgh, the second permanent secretary.

The Treasury later made a final decision to reject the company's application.

Shadow Chancellor Anneliese Dodds said: “Rishi Sunak already had questions to answer as to why Greensill was given so much more access to the Treasury than other Covid lenders.

“The suggestion that David Cameron was also contacting the Chancellor directly to further Greensill's commercial interests raises even bigger concerns.

“This is public money, and the processes involved in decision-making should be fully transparent and beyond reproach. We need a full and thorough investigation into what's happened here.”

A Treasury spokeswoman said: “The meetings in question were primarily about broadening the scope of CCFF to enable access for providers of supply chain finance, which, following a call for evidence and discussions with several other firms within the sector, we decided against and informed the businesses concerned.”

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