Lloyds defends boss over ‘love tryst’ expenses claims

Edinburgh-based Lloyds Bank, the parent of Bank of Scotland, has been forced to defend its married Portuguese chief executive over claims that he ran up thousands of pounds in expenses on a luxury hotel bill while on a trip with an alleged lover.

Antonio Horta-Osorio has faced calls to resign over the alleged tryst with Dr Wendy Piatt, director general of the Russell Group of universities, which, reports claimed, was enjoyed at the expense of the still 9 per cent state-owned lender.

The Sun newspaper published pictures showing the Lloyds boss, who was paid £8.77 million last year, and the unmarried former political aide and adviser to Tony Blair, taking a boat trip.

The tabloid said the couple had dined and spent several evenings together in Singapore.

Mr Horta-Osório took a three-month sabbatical in November 2011 after being diagnosed with fatigue and stress due to his workload. Almost £1 billion was wiped off Lloyds’ market value when he went on sick leave.

The newspaper reported that he was seen enjoying days out with Dr Piatt on the six-night business trip to the Far East where he ran up a £3,276 bill on his room, mini-bar and room service, plus an extra £550 on two visits to the hotel spa.

The pair met up at his £350-a-night room at the five star Mandarin Oriental hotel, which he booked using his Lloyds Bank address.

Questions were raised over whether Mr Horta-Osorio’s expenses were paid by the bank, which received a £23.7 billion bailout from the UK Government during the financial crisis of 2008.

The allegations come at a sensitive time for Lloyds which is in the process of shedding 3,000 staff and prepares to close 200 branches - 23 in Scotland.

But the bank has insisted that its chief had broken no rules in filing expenses from his trip to Singapore.

A spokesman for Lloyds Banking Group said Mr Horta-Osorio, who has been married for 25 years and has three children, had paid his own personal expenses during the Singapore trip.

He added: “In this case there is no breach of our policy and the personal expenses are paid for by Antonio.”

Lloyds has refused to answer questions about his relationship with Dr Piatt, who previously worked for the Institute for Public Policy Research.

She is understood to have travelled to Singapore to meet university chiefs and there is no suggestion she has wrongly claimed costs or expenses.

Her room was paid for by the Russell Group.