MPs to grill major UK banks after bumper yearly profits

Four of the UK’s biggest bank bosses are set to be grilled by MPs over their surging profits while consumers feel the cost-of-living pinch.

The chief executives of Barclays UK, Santander UK, NatWest and Lloyds will face questions from a group of MPs on the Treasury Committee.

They are expected to be scrutinised about how they are supporting customers through the cost-of-living crisis and with higher mortgage costs.

The UK’s major lenders reported bumper profits over the latest year as they benefited from higher interest rates, which pushed up the cost of borrowing.

Lloyds saw its earnings soar by more than 50% to an all-time high, while NatWest made its biggest yearly profit since 2007.

HSBC, which is not scheduled to attend the committee session, also revealed record high profits over 2023 of more than 30 billion US dollars (£23.5 billion).

The Treasury Committee is formed of a group of cross-party MPs who scrutinise the work of the Treasury.

The MPs are also expected to press the bank chiefs on their progress with improving savings rates, having already faced pressure from the committee to pass on higher interest rates to savers.

None of the banks attending the session currently offer more than 1.75% interest on their instant access current accounts for balances under £25,000.

The committee session will take place at Parliament on Wednesday March 20.