Sale represents the first disposal of taxpayers’ 79% stake in bank – even though shares are worth less than the £45bn originally paid
George Osborne has kicked off the first sale of shares in the Royal Bank of Scotland since it was rescued in 2008, at a likely loss of around £1bn to the taxpayer.
The chancellor faced criticism from Labour politicians and trade union officials that he should have waited for the bank to achieve more deep-rooted reform before embarking on a major privatisation.