Natwest share sale shelved as election brings government to a halt
The government’s much touted retail sale of Natwest shares has been derailed by Rishi Sunak’s move to call a snap election, Morning Wire understands.
Ministers had been gearing up to offload a chunk of the government’s remaining stake in Natwest to retail investors this summer, in plans confirmed by Jeremy Hunt in his March budget.
However, those plans have now been put on ice after the prime minister announced the country would head to the polls in July, Treasury sources confirmed with Morning Wire
Sky News’ Mark Kleinman first reported the news.
The government had been hoping to ignite a culture of retail investment in the UK by conducting a mass sale of the shares to the general public this summer.
In their promotion of the share sale, the chancellor and City minister had likened the move to the Thatcher-era ‘Tell Sid’ advertising campaign used to drum up interest in the privatisation of British Gas.
“It’s time to get Sid investing again,” the chancellor Jeremy Hunt said last year, referencing the state backed share-ownership campaign under Thatcher in the 80s.
Those plans had already been thrown into doubt however after the government hit pause on a bidding process in March.
The government has held a stake in Natwest since rescuing the bank during the financial crisis. Over the past few months the government has been gradually feeding its stake back into the market
The move to pause the sale comes as ministers reportedly prepare to either abandon or rush through scores of bills through parliaments ahead of the election.