It is hardly surprising, given the UK banking meltdown to see headlines such as Era of big bonuses for bankers to end as Lloyds attracts scrutiny.
Ministers joined ranks in condemnation of the payments. David Cameron, the Tory leader, proposed that bonuses in taxpayer-funded banks be capped at £2,000. Sources close to the Prime Minister said that a cap on such payments could not be ruled out.
The pressure for new curbs increased after reports that Lloyds planned to pay out £120million in bonuses for last year. On Friday the bank gave warning that its subsidiary HBOS had lost £10billion – £1.6billion more than expected.
That is only one of the consequences of this devastating situation. More importantly, questions remain over who carries the can for the banking meltdown
How much did the bankers know about the impending crisis and how much advice did they ignore as their businesses headed to the edge of a cliff.
Paul Moore, former head of regulatory risk at HBOS, alleged that he had been sacked, threatened and gagged four years ago after raising concerns that HBOS was growing too fast. He claimed Sir James Crosby, head of HBOS, had dismissed him and that it was “his decision and his alone”. Moore sued HBOS for unfair dismissal under the whistle blowing legislation and the bank settled while subjecting him to a gagging order.
The article goes on to explore how well the Financial Services Authority (FSA) has been fulfilling its mandate. The culture there is too relaxed and chummy. There is a greater need for ‘challenge’. Competent people must be in place and the right questions must be asked and answered. Truth and consequences must be the new order as a result of this horrendous banking meltdown.
Related articles by Zemanta
- Crosby resigns from FSA (guardian.co.uk)
- Brown Blamed For Banking Crisis (news.sky.com)
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=f7749433-72d2-45c1-af17-5279faa57377)
It’s pretty obvious to most people in the UK that Gordon Brown should “carry the can”. He took the credit for 10 years of boom when he was Chancellor, despite claiming an “end to boom and bust”.
He reduced banking regulation by creating a toothless FSA to take fiscal oversight duties away from the Bank Of England. At the same time, he fuelled a property bubble by misreporting inflationary figures and forcing the Monetary Policy Committee to keep interest rates low.
Brown also encouraged reckless consumer spending by making it easier to declare bankruptcy. Now he thinks he can save the economy by giving borrowed money to failed banks.