Loans between ministers put to ethics chief

Questions about members of Government lending each other money add to fears of further scandal

‘I won’t name individuals, but I have been asked the question about loans between ministers before’

‘My general advice is, it’s probably not a good idea. As a minimum it would need to be transparent’

THE Government’s ethics chief has revealed that he has been asked for advice on whether ministers can loan each other money.

Darren Tierney, a senior civil servant at the Cabinet Office, said he had been approached for his view on whether such transactions are allowed.

His remarks, at a hearing of the Commons public affairs committee, will add to fears of another potential scandal in Downing Street.

He was asked by William Wragg, a Tory MP, whether “ministers or No10” had ever sought advice “on whether ministers should declare loans or donations to one another”.

“I’ve certainly been asked, I won’t name individuals, but I have been asked the question about loans between ministers before, not recently I have to say,” Mr Tierney replied.

Asked what his counsel would be, he added: “My general advice is, it’s probably not a good idea. As a minimum it would need to be transparent.”

He said if such a transaction were to be allowed, it would usually be up to the Government’s independent ethics adviser to give it the green light. But that post has been vacant since its previous holder, Lord Geidt, quit earlier this month following the partygate revelations.

Mr Tierney, who leads the propriety and ethics team at the Cabinet Office, has been in the post since March last year.

That means the request to him for advice on a potential inter-ministerial loan was made at some point over the past 15 months.

Boris Johnson’s government has been mired in a series of spendingrelated allegations during that time. The Prime Minister faced questions in April last year over who footed the bill for a refurbishment of the No10 flat, including gold wallpaper, which cost £840 a roll. It later emerged that Lord Brownlow, a Tory donor, had contributed at least £112,000 to covering the bill for the overhaul.

Mr Johnson also prompted controversy in July last year when he failed to declare staying at the Caribbean villa of another donor, David Ross. The holiday is estimated to have been worth around £15,000.

During the same Commons session the country’s top civil servant insisted working from home is “here to stay” as ministers strive to get more mandarins back to their desks.

Simon Case, the Cabinet secretary, said “hybrid working” had saved the taxpayer the cost of more expensive office space and was “part of the system”. But he also insisted government departments must ensure staff are making “full use” of the space available to them to deliver the best value for money.

He referred a 2019 article by Jacob Rees-mogg, the minister for efficiency, backing plans to increase working from home to free up public land for housing.

“The Government spends very significant money on the estate for government and it’s absolutely vital we make best use of taxpayers’ money,” Mr Case said.

Boris Johnson has announced plans to cut 91,000 jobs from the Civil Service, a 20 per cent reduction that will take it back down to pre-2016 levels.

Mr Rees-mogg said there are “too many people on the public payroll” but the cutbacks could mean the Government can “pay the people who remain better”.