Last week Douglas Lumsden, Member of the Scottish Parliament for North East Scotland, asked the Scottish Government “whether it has had any meetings with the Scottish National Investment Bank (SNIB) to discuss any alleged cases of conflict of interest in relation to SNIB employees while involved in SNIB investments in external companies” as questions continue to be raised over transparency and governance issues at the SNIB.
This comes after Disruption Banking revealed several cases of potential conflicts of interest at the SNIB. For one, the Bank has invested a total of £16.5 million of taxpayers’ money in three companies led by individuals known to have close links with the Scottish Government.
In February last year, the Bank also invested £5 million in a company partly owned by one of its own directors, Carolyn Jameson, who owns shares worth £272,000 in the company.
Travelnest also received £7.5 million in investment from the SNIB, despite being a loss-making company that had failed to file company accounts for two years, at a time when the company’s CEO had a sibling working at the Bank. The SNIB said that all the relevant due diligence procedures were followed in all these cases.
In response to Lumsden’s question, the Scottish Government said that they “routinely discuss a range of matters with the Bank, including its approach to governance, risk, and procedures for managing conflicts of interest. The Bank’s investment decisions are overseen by an Investment Committee who rigorously and objectively assess each business case on its commercial merits.”
Lumsden has previously raised questions about the lack of a legally mandated advisory board at the Bank, which he believes would help the SNIB manage potential conflicts of interest more effectively. The Scottish Government has said that work is underway to establish this board but no specific details have yet been forthcoming.
Author: Harry Clynch
