The Treasury will today haul in bank bosses to warn them they must not ‘de-bank’ customers over their political views.
City minister Andrew Griffith has invited representatives from 19 banks and financial services firms to attend the summit, which NatWest chief executive Dame Alison Rose is due to attend.
A Treasury source said Mr Griffith would ‘read the riot act’ to bank bosses about their attempts to police the views of customers.
Ministers announced plans last week to change the law to require banks to give customers three months’ notice before closing accounts.
They will also be forced to explain their reasons for seeking to close an account – something Coutts refused to do in the case of former Ukip leader Nigel Farage – giving customers a chance to appeal.
City minister Andrew Griffith has invited representatives from 19 banks and financial services firms to attend the summit, which NatWest chief executive Dame Alison Rose is due to attend (File Photo)
The parliamentary summer recess means that the change in the law cannot now be introduced until the autumn.
But Mr Griffith will warn the banks to start applying it immediately on a voluntary basis.
He is also expected to raise concerns about the existence of secretive committees established to monitor the views of customers.
‘He is going to read the riot act to them,’ a source said. ‘There is a lot of concern about what has been going on. It is not just about the treatment of Farage – it is the precedent that it sets.’