London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Sep 16, 2025

Greensill collapse: £335m of taxpayers' cash at 'increased risk' due to 'woefully inadequate' checks on firm David Cameron lobbied for

Greensill collapse: £335m of taxpayers' cash at 'increased risk' due to 'woefully inadequate' checks on firm David Cameron lobbied for

The Public Accounts Committee finds that "up to £335m of taxpayer money is at increased risk following the British Business Bank's failure to conduct sufficient due diligence" into Greensill, when it applied to be a lender for COVID schemes.

Hundreds of millions of pounds of taxpayers' money is at increased risk due to a failure to conduct sufficient checks on the now-collapsed finance firm that David Cameron lobbied for, a committee of MPs has found.

In a new report by the House of Commons' Public Accounts Committee (PAC), on the lessons to be learned from the demise of Greensill Capital, the group of MPs have scrutinised a decision to allow the firm to be a lender under government-backed COVID support schemes.

The government-owned British Business Bank approved Greensill as a lender for both the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS), as well as the Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CLBILS).

Greensill loaned £400m under CLBILS, the maximum it was permitted to lend, and £18.5m under CBILS.

The ex-PM with the firm's founder, Lex Greensill, on a trip to Saudi Arabia in January 2020


But in March this year, Greensill - who employed former prime minister Mr Cameron as an adviser - filed for insolvency.

In their report, the PAC found that "up to £335m of taxpayer money is at increased risk following the British Business Bank's failure to conduct sufficient due diligence" into Greensill, when the firm applied to be an accredited lender under the COVID support schemes.

The MPs concluded that the Bank's "approach to due diligence in accrediting Greensill was woefully inadequate" and criticised the Bank for striking the "wrong balance" between "making decisions quickly" during the pandemic and "protecting taxpayer interests".

"In the case of Greensill, the Bank was insufficiently curious about media reports questioning Greensill's lending model, its over-exposure to borrowers, and ethical standards until problems were clear and hundreds of millions of taxpayers' money left exposed," their report added.

They also found that "a lack of information-sharing across government" had "once again hampered sound decision-making in government's response to the pandemic and allowed Greensill access to taxpayer-funded schemes".

The PAC also said the government had "not yet identified the broader lessons from its accreditation of Greensill or from its COVID-19 business support schemes" and added it was "essential that these lessons are identified".

In further criticism of the Bank, the MPs said it had been "insufficiently curious when identifying where money lent through the schemes, including by Greensill, has ultimately gone".

In a series of recommendations, the MPs called on the Bank to review its accreditation process, and for itself, the Treasury and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to publish a "full lessons-learned report" by July next year.

Mr Cameron has been reported to have made about £7m during his two-and-a-half years' part-time work for Greensill before its collapse, including a salary of £720,000 a year.

Earlier this year, the ex-prime minister was revealed to have bombarded ministers and officials - as well as the Bank of England - with WhatsApps, texts and emails in his pursuit of winning Greensill access to government-backed COVID support schemes.

Labour MP Dame Meg Hillier, chair of the PAC, said: "The British Business Bank only had to read the papers to be aware of serious questions about Greensill's lending model, over-exposure to borrowers, and its ethical standards - yet it didn't really start to delve into those issues until the problems were clear and hundreds of millions of taxpayers' money was already at risk.

"It professed itself 'very surprised' to discover where these taxpayer-backed loans had gone on its watch, in contravention of its own lending and accreditation rules."

A government spokesperson said: "The government was not involved in the decision to accredit Greensill.

"The decision was taken independently by the British Business Bank, in accordance with their usual procedures."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
U.S. and Britain Poised to Finalize Over $10 Billion in High-Tech, Nuclear and Defense Deals During Trump State Visit
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
Anesthesiologist Left Operation Mid-Surgery to Have Sex with Nurse
Tens of Thousands of Young Chinese Get Up Every Morning and Go to Work Where They Do Nothing
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
The German Owner of Politico Mathias Döpfner Eyes Further U.S. Media Expansion After Axel Springer Restructuring
Suspect Arrested: Utah Man in Custody for Charlie Kirk’s Fatal Shooting
In a politically motivated trial: Bolsonaro Sentenced to 27 Years for Plotting Coup After 2022 Defeat
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
Starmer Establishes Economic ‘Budget Board’ to Centralise Policy and Rebuild Business Trust
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Brazilian police say ex-President Bolsonaro had planned to flee to Argentina seeking asylum
Trinidad Leader Applauds U.S. Naval Strike and Advocates Forceful Action Against Traffickers
Kim Jong Un Oversees Final Test of New High-Thrust Solid-Fuel Rocket Engine
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Supreme Court temporarily allows Trump to pause billions in foreign aid
Charlie Sheen says his father, Martin Sheen, turned him in to the police: 'The greatest betrayal possible'
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
×