A former Tory minister investigated via email sent to the Treasury on behalf of the Bank

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Former Tory adviser Philip Hammond is under investigation by the UK’s pressure watchdog via an email sent to a senior government official on behalf of a bank.

Labor accused Hammond of breaching lobbying rules after it emerged that the former Tory MP had sent a letter to the Treasury about Oak North Bank – the company he now works for as a paid consultant.

Reportedly, the former secretary sent an email to the Treasury’s second-largest civilian employee in July 2020 to explain the benefits of a “toolkit” developed by OakNorth for evaluating borrowers.

The lobbyist investigated whether Hammond – who stepped down as MP before the 2019 general election – should have registered as a lobbyist when he contacted the Treasury official.

The Office of the Registrar of Advisory Lobbyists confirmed the formal investigation on Wednesday. “A summary of the case will be published once the investigation is complete,” the agency told the Financial Times.

It comes as Boris Johnson’s Labor Party has called for Tory co-chair Ben Elliott to be removed from office “immediately” over his lobbying practices.

Elliott discussed with foreign ambassadors a plan to give a major donor to the Conservative Party a role that helps the party bolster ties with Middle Eastern countries — without revealing that the donor was a client of its own concierge, according to the Financial Times.

Labor MP Annelies Dodds said it was “shameful” that Elliott had “blurred the lines” between government and business activities.

“It is simply wrong for Ben Elliott to take advantage of his role in the UK’s ruling party to hold confidential discussions with foreign diplomats on behalf of a business client and without revealing their business relationship.”

“We urgently need to know what meetings have taken place, what was discussed and what impact this has on the development of UK government policy,” she added.

The Advisory Lobbyists’ Registrar was set up in 2014 in an effort to bring transparency into the murky world of lobbying. Both individuals and organizations seeking to influence government policy are required to register.

Labor deputy leader Angela Rayner alleged that Hammond – who resigned after losing the Tory whip over his protest against Boris Johnson’s plans for Britain’s exit from the European Union – had violated previous ministers’ code of conduct.

The ministerial act states that former ministers must “adhere” to the Business Appointments Advisory Committee (ACUPA), which advises former MPs who have recently resigned what kind of lobbying activities they can and cannot do.

The commission is said to have told Mr Hammond that he should not use his contacts in government to “influence policy or secure business” on behalf of Oak North for two years.

“Hammond completely ignored the terms that were made clear to him when he took the position at Oak North Bank,” Rayner said. “If the rules are treated with such cynicism by the former chancellor, the whole system is corrupt.”

Lord Hammond’s spokesman insisted that Oak North was offering its toolkit to the Treasury “free of charge” and no rules had been broken.

In response to the pressure regulator’s investigation, his spokesperson said: “It is clear that there has been no requirement to register this contact under the Rules and Lord Hammond looks forward to the Registrar’s confirmation of this in due course.”

Last month, Labor described the Westminster Committee that oversees lobbying as “toothless” after it gave Mr Hammond the green light to take on an advisory role to the Saudi finance ministry.

The chair of the ACUBA committee – former Conservative party chair Eric Pickles – told Mr Hammond that there were concerns he risked creating “a perception that you might be offered this job as a result of your time in office”.

However, approval was granted and Mr Pickles said consultation with Mr Hammond’s previous administrations helped satisfy the concerns.

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