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Nick Moss wonders when Tory ministers will get similarly worked up about former offenders like him having their banking facilities withdrawn with no explanation. Plus letters from Alison Crowther and David SimpsonIt would be a pleasant surprise if the Financial Conduct Authority, the financial ombudsman, the chancellor or the prime minister could “work up an indignant head of steam” (Don’t be fooled: this row is about more than Nigel Farage and Coutts – what lies beneath is Brexit, 27 July) about the number of ex-offenders who are either refused bank accounts or have financial services withdrawn. I was one of many former prisoners who had banking facilities suddenly withdrawn by my bank without warning or explanation. As far as the ombudsman was concerned, it was a business decision for the bank and therefore not open to challenge.I also don’t recall the wave of closures of high street bank branches – which affected millions who can’t bank online – troubling the movers and shakers who rushed to support Nigel Farage. According to the ombudsman, “businesses that provide bank accounts are generally entitled to close them – just as their customers are”. As the French writer Anatole France put it: “The law, in its majestic equality, forbids the rich as well as the poor to sleep under bridges...”Nick MossLondon Continue reading...