U.K., Nov. 10 -- UK Parliament issued the following news:
James Bowler, Permanent Secretary at the Treasury, has confirmed the Government Security Group is leading an investigation into a potential leak of Budget measures which may have moved financial markets, according to a letter published by the Treasury Select Committee.
Read the letter
The correspondence has been published the day before the Chancellor of the Exchequer is set to appear before the Treasury Committee. The session , which will be focused on Mr Healey's Autumn Budget, will take place at 14:15 on Wednesday afternoon. It is likely the potential leak will be covered in the session.
In the correspondence, Mr Bowler says he has been assured that no banks, representatives or trade bodies were briefed on the details of the changes to the Bank Corporation Tax Surcharge before the policy was announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
However, the Permanent Secretary notes that in the period immediately preceding the Budget speech, there is a 'necessary widening' of the circle of knowledge within government to prepare for its delivery.
Chair quote
Chair of the Treasury Committee, Dame Meg Hillier, said:
"I suspect that yet another inquiry into the leak of Budget measures will turn up no evidence of a breach but plenty of reassurance that next time it will be even more secure. And so the cycle continues.
"We cannot continue to accept this doom-loop of dead-end investigations in which everybody in the Treasury throws their hands up in despair, but nobody is ever found to have done anything wrong.
"The Treasury still has questions to answer on how market sensitive information which was likely to affect the share price of banks was circulating around newsrooms before it was given to Parliament. I will be pushing for those answers when the Chancellor appears in front of the Committee tomorrow afternoon."
Further information
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