On the  1 April, I questioned Vince Cable on the sale of Royal Mail. It is clear taxpayers have been short-changed by £100s of millions, and that the Government sold a national asset at a knock-down price. My question and his answer are below:

Julie Elliott: When the Secretary of State gave evidence to the Business, Innovation and Skills Committee about this issue in October, when I was still a member of the Committee, we questioned him about what we perceived to be an undervaluation. He said that rather than looking at the value a few days after flotation, it would be more realistic to look at it after three or six months. We are now there and it was clearly undervalued. What does he say to the British people about giving away one of our national assets?

Vince Cable: I think that what I actually said was between three and six months on the one hand and a year on the other. I have subsequently been criticised by people in the market, who feel that that is too short a term and that two years would be a better perspective.