MPs have asked what Rishi Sunak is “afraid of” by avoiding the House of Commons during an urgent question on David Cameron and his involvement in the Greensill lobbying row.
Text messages revealed Sunak revealed “pushed” officials to consider plans that could have helped the firm Cameron was lobbying for.
Labour MP Andrew Gwynne told the Commons: “The chancellor now washes his hands of the Covid public lending schemes that he set up. It’s laughable given the fanfare and fuss he made of their launch. I almost feel sorry for the minister – he’s been sent here to defend the actions of senior ministers not even in his department.
“Given the chancellor is the person who received lobbying texts from David Cameron, can the minister tell the House what he thinks the chancellor is afraid of?”
Business minister Paul Scully, responding on behalf of the government, however responded: “The chancellor has delivered £356 billion… I think it is… worth of support currently to businesses. He has flexed at every opportunity across government devising and designing loan schemes which are overseen by the British Business Bank which is overseen as the single shareholder by the Secretary of State for BEIS.
“And so that’s what we should be proud of, the chancellor is not afraid of anything here. The question here is talking about those corona(virus) large business loan scheme, which is administered by BEIS and that’s why I’m here to answer that question.”
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