Chris Leslie MP, Labour’s Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury, commenting on George Osborne’s repeated failure to answer serious questions over the Government’s handling allegations of tax avoidance and evasion at HSBC, said: 

“We’ve now had a week of silence from George Osborne - the submarine Chancellor still hasn’t surfaced. But it is time he and David Cameron finally started answering questions about HSBC and Lord Green. 

“Why has there only been one prosecution out of 1,100 names? Did David Cameron and George Osborne discuss tax evasion at HSBC with Lord Green? Why did they appoint Lord Green as a Tory Minister months after the government received these files? Why did George Osborne and the Treasury sign a deal with the Swiss in 2012 which prevents the UK from actively obtaining similar information in the future?

“In this row over tax evasion David Cameron and George Osborne are now guilty of political evasion.”