Royal Bank of Scotland faces an even bigger bill than Barclays to settle allegations that it attempted to manipulate Libor, according to a Labour member of the Treasury select committee, reports The Telegraph.
MP John Mann said he had been told by “City insiders” that RBS would have to pay out even more than the £290m Barclays was handed in fines after settling the US and British investigations into Libor-rigging.
Mr Mann claimed that the Government was already aware of the scale of the fines likely to be imposed on RBS, which is 82pc owned by the state.
“There is an obvious Government advantage in allowing Barclays to take the full flak and letting RBS sneak in later,” he said.
Mr Mann is demanding that George Osborne, the Chancellor, reveal if he has been briefed on any role RBS might have had in the manipulation of Libor; who he was briefed by, who he has informed and what actions he has taken since.
Mr Mann has been an outspoken critic of the banking industry and last month lambasted Andrew Tyrie, chairman of the Treasury committee, after he was not invited to join a parliamentary committee charged with looking into ways to reform the sector.
