Lord Myners branded 'bloody naïve'
Updated on 17 March 2009
Sir Fred Goodwin will pay back a £3m advance but will keep his £17m pension pot.
MPs have called Treasury Minister Lord Myners "bloody naïve" for failing to ask more questions about the deal.
Lord Myners told the Treasury select committee he had not approved the package, instead blaming the RBS board for treating Sir Fred "more favourably than required".
Myners rejects "expensive back-scratching" claims
Despite his claims to not be responsible for Sir Fred's pension payments, Lord Myners faced fierce criticism form committee members over his role in the fiasco.
Michael Fallon, MP for Sevenoaks, told Lord Myners: "You were on the NatWest board when Sir Derek Wanless was given a £3m pension package - which has since become known in the City as 'doing a Wanless'.
"I put it to you that either you were party to some very expensive back-scratching and it was only when the prime minister found out about it that you took this stance, or that you simply failed in your duty to protect the taxpayer. Now which is it?"
Lord Myners said neither accusation as true, and restated that the pension settlement decision was made by RBS alone.
