German conservative advises UK downgrade

[scooterscot]

German conservative advises UK downgrade | Reuters

He has a point...

KIEL, Germany | Fri Jan 13, 2012 6:38pm GMT

(Reuters) - A senior German lawmaker Friday accused ratings agency Standard and Poor's of playing politics, saying the U.S. agency should also downgrade Britain if it downgrades France as expected.

Michael Fuchs, deputy leader of the parliamentary group for Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats, said S&P had a distorted view of the euro zone and that downgrades of its member states were politically motivated.

"This step is out of order," he told Reuters on the sidelines of a party meeting, in reference to reports S&P would cut the ratings of several euro zone states later in the day.

"Standard and Poor's must stop playing politics... why doesn't it act on the highly indebted United States or highly indebted Britain?" he said, pointing out that Britain has higher public debt and deficits than France.

"If the agency downgrades France, it should also downgrade Britain in order to be consistent," he said, adding that this was unlikely.

The situation was another reminder for Europe that it needs its own independent ratings agency, he added.

(Reporting by Andreas Rinke, writing by Brian Rohan; editing by Ron Askew)

[DimPrawn]

We can easily pay off our debts, infact we could pay off all the World's debts a million times over.

Ask Merv about his new printer.

[TimberWolf]

Remember the golden rule: he who owns the gold makes the rules.

Or in this case banks, and the ability to print pretend gold and make pretend rules.

[MarillionFan]

We can easily pay off our debts, infact we could pay off all the World's debts a million times over.

Ask Merv about his new printer.

Got myself one as well. Just can't seem to change it from US to UK though.

[OwlHoot]

The situation was another reminder for Europe that it needs its own independent ratings agency, he added.

[sasguru]

He's not as stupid as most Germans. At least he's beginning to understand the Anglo-Saxon plot to destroy the Euro.
Mind you the Anglo-Saxons have always bested the Teutons - see the US, Canada, Australia, NZ.
Not one of their leaders has a German name

[AtW]

Make it illegal to insure tulip like risks of default (don't lend at all if you think it can happen and if you do take full risk of loss) and also any rating activity - whoever chooses to take risks should do their own research.

[scooterscot]

Remember the golden rule: he who owns the gold makes the rules.

Italy has more han double England's gold reserves.

There be a gold mine in Scotland, don't know about those in England though...

[KimberleyChris]

"The situation was another reminder for Europe that it needs its own independent ratings agency, he added."

Would anybody listen to a European Ratings Agency if it rated its own credit-worthiness??

Surely that's what triggered this whole damned mess in the first place...Americans self-certifying their own credit-worthiness to their two big mortgage lenders without evidence?

[scooterscot]

"The situation was another reminder for Europe that it needs its own independent ratings agency, he added."

Would anybody listen to a European Ratings Agency if it rated its own credit-worthiness??

For the same reason markets listen to US agencies, they've no mind of they're own.