Why should the taxpayer be bailing-out Northern Rock?

[AlfredJPruffock]

One approach would be to dissolve all Banks and Building societies in the UK ( to all extents and purposes they are a cartel ) and instead have only one Central Government Bank - each bank account would then be indexed by your National Insurance Number.

Which is the worse crime - to rob a bank - or to own one ?

Brecht The Threepenny Opera

[DBA_bloke]

One approach would be to dissolve all Banks and Building societies in the UK ( to all extents and purposes they are a cartel ) and instead have only one Central Government Bank - each bank account would then indexed by your National Insurance Number.

Which is the worse crime - to rob a bank - or to own one ?

Brecht The Threepenny Opera

Being a complete financial tit, I have no idea if that's stupid, or clever. So, I'll draw all my money out of my accounts now, to be safe. If the Great British public hear of such an idea, there'll be another run, or something.

[AlfredJPruffock]

Well, in a way NL is actively considering it ... I must say for once I am with them on this one.


Meanwhile, Lambert queried Chancellor Alistair Darling's call for a return to "good, old-fashioned banking", with some of the esoteric, high-risk lending removed in the wake of the current credit crisis triggered by subprime lending in the United States.

Lambert said it was a good thing that the banking industry had become more competitive and innovative compared with a generation ago when he said it was "a cartel, when mortgages were rationed and only the well-heeled could borrow".

He added: "If Alistair Darling, by good, old-fashioned banking, means when people wore top hats and tailcoats I hope we never see that again."

[Churchill]

He added: "If Alistair Darling, by good, old-fashioned banking, means when people wore top hats and tailcoats I hope we never see that again."

Do you not have an account with Coutts then?

[AlfredJPruffock]

Perhaps Mr Darling has more in mind cutting out the Theatre of Financiers - the extravagent middle men - from the equation - whose greedy reckless lending to those who could not afford it has got us into this sad state of affairs.

[XLMonkey]

This whole thing reminds me of "Extraordinary Delusions and the Madness of Crowds" (http://www.amazon.com/Extraordinary-...s/dp/051788433).

I remember vividly the dot-com frenzy and people thinking that if it was an internet stock then it couldn't help but make them a fortune. Then, we had crowds of people falling over themselves to give money to teams with no business plan, no experience and no idea.

Now, crowds of people are falling over themselves to take their money out of a financial institution with a conservative lending policy, stable management, low-risk book of borrowers and a government backed guarantee on their capital.

The only thing I can conclude is that, whatever the crowd is doing, it isn't doing it based on reason.

[bored]

Now, crowds of people are falling over themselves to take their money out of a financial institution with a conservative lending policy, stable management, low-risk book of borrowers and a government backed guarantee on their capital.

The only thing I can conclude is that, whatever the crowd is doing, it isn't doing it based on reason.

Yup. I would rather worry about Feds and possibly BoE lowering interest rates and thus encouraging excessive borrowing and provoking inflation.

[wendigo100]

Doesn't this government help go against the European competition laws?

[Addanc]

++ Source : IPPR Think-Tank Got "Massive" Donations from Northern Rock++

New Labour's favourite think-tank and source of policy ideas has confirmed it received funding from Northern Rock.

IPPR has yet to get back to Guido, so am as yet unable to confirm that they received hundreds of thousands of pounds in donations from Northern Rock. Reminds Guido of how generous Enron was with political donations before the end...

Want a potential reason for bailing out NR; if it smells like it, feels like it then it must be ...

[wendigo100]

"New Labour's favourite think-tank and source of policy ideas has confirmed it received funding from Northern Rock.

IPPR has yet to get back to Guido, so am as yet unable to confirm that they received hundreds of thousands of pounds in donations from Northern Rock."

If it smells like it, feels like it then it must be ...

Not more sleaze, surely?