Ian Murray MP, Labour’s Shadow Minister for Trade and Investment, commenting after the BIS Committee’s hearing on Royal Mail today, said:

“There are real concerns that taxpayers have lost out to the tune of hundreds of millions of pounds as a result of ministers’ botched Royal Mail fire sale at a time when families are struggling with a cost-of-living crisis of David Cameron’s making.

“Vince Cable has dismissed these concerns as ‘froth’ but this is looking less credible by the day and he has serious questions to answer. We now know he considered the option of a higher price and discussed this with banks but subsequently rejected this option. He needs to explain to the committee next week why this happened and whether political considerations played a role.

“Evidence this morning highlighted that major banks including Citibank and JPMorgan, alongside Panmure Gordon, valued Royal Mail significantly above the price at which it was sold.”