Nigel Farage contacts lawyers after being left ‘frustrated’ by NatWest meeting refusal

Farage, who had his Coutts account removed as a result of his views “not aligning” with their values, has vowed to not give up the fight of ensuring it never happens again to anyone.

Coutts, owned by NatWest Group, have been called to a face-to-face meeting with the GB News presenter who is seeking answers on how many other people have been affected by account closures.

Speaking on his GB News show, Farage revealed that his endeavours are yet to be successful, but he is now going down the legal route to ensure it takes place.

“I also wrote to NatWest Group on Monday requesting a meeting. I want to find out how many other people this has happened to.

“They are refusing to have that meeting because they are relying on the inquiry, set up by Sir Howard Davies, where he has appointed a city law firm called Travis Smith.

“Headed up by a chap called Chris Hale. The problem is, Chris Hale has described Brexiteers as ‘xenophobes, racists and being nostalgic for the past’.

“They’ve asked a man to investigate what happened to me that used exactly the same language that appeared in the Coutts file.”

Farage hit out at the hypocrisy on show, going on to reveal he is getting his lawyers involved in the scandal as a result.

“As you can imagine, I am somewhat frustrated and angry by this. The establishment is doing its best to kick the can down the road.

“As a result, I’ve got no choice but to act and get my lawyers to act and move and send some much stronger letters.

“There is a lot at stake here, not just my relationship with that bank, but a whole scandal that is going on in this industry.”

The former UKIP leader also divulged information about his subject access request to NatWest, in which he is seeking clarification on how much information the bank has accrued about him.

“I submitted a subject access to request to NatWest to answer what personal information they have on me,” he said on GB News.

“They got back to me today, and told me that my case was ‘complex’, and as a result they did not need to answer me within 30 days.

“They’ve kicked the can down the road. I also received a reply from the Information Commissioners’ Office [ICO]. I’ve gone to them to say, ‘would they please investigate the clear and obvious GDPR breaches that were committed by Dame Alison Rose, former CEO of NatWest, when they briefed the BBC.

“The ICO told me that my case is ‘complex’, and therefore they can’t investigate it immediately.

“If ever I saw a case of the establishment clubbing together to protect their own, this is it.”

Farage’s crusade against NatWest has led to the resignation of chief executive Dame Alison Rose and Coutts boss Peter Flavel, with his campaign on account closures receiving support from ministers and Tory MPs.

Senior ministers have publicly shown their support for Nigel Farage, including Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, who hinted that NatWest are running the risk of “big fines”.

Hunt wrote to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on Thursday to “urgently investigate how widespread this practice is, and put a stop to it”.