§ Mr. Cohenasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) in what circumstances the Bank of England comments on its financial relationships with individual banking institutions; and if he will make a statement;
(2) if he will make it his policy to answer questions on commitments or guarantees of, or relating to, public money by the Bank of England in support of financial institutions; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Ian StewartIt is for the Bank of England to determine its policy on answering questions concerning its relationships with financial institutions where these relationships rely on the bank's own resources. The bank is constrained by considerations of customer confidentiality and by the confidentiality requirements of the Banking Act 1979.