Jacob Rees-Mogg has accused Jeremy Corbyn of “peddling false news” after the Labour leader accused him of moving his firm to the EU in preparation for Brexit.
Speaking during prime minister’s questions, Corbyn said “even those Brexiteers who’ve made Brexit their life’s work” were now “concerned about their own financial interests”.
“The honourable member for North East Somerset [Rees-Mogg] is relocating his hedge fund to the eurozone. The honourable member for Wokingham [John Redwood] is advising his clients to disinvest in Britain,” he said.
Somerset Capital Management, Rees-Mogg’s company, has set up a new arm in Dublin.
But Rees-Mogg hit back at Corbyn, accusing him of being “false in all respects”.
“My company does not actually run hedge funds. So to move a hedge fund would have shown a remarkable acrobatic nature within the business,” he said. “We have not in fact moved a fund out of this country.”
Rees-Mogg demanded Corbyn “set the record straight” or otherwise be seen as a “peddler of false news”.
Redwood, who is Chief Global Strategist for investment firm Charles Stanley, has been criticised in the past for suggesting investors “look further afield” beyond the UK following Brexit.
Amid deep public splits in Theresa May’s cabinet over Brexit, Corbyn claimed the prime minister was having to “negotiate round the clock” with her ministers rather than focus on protecting jobs.
But May said the Conservative Party “has always been the party that will back business”.
And she asked Corbyn why, if he was “so concerned about the aviation industry”, did Labour not back the expansion of Heathrow.