Bankrupt Britain

[expat]

Lets see who goes to the IMF 1st shall we, USA, Russia, Japan or Britain.

I'm not making arguments about that. On the contrary, I have been saying for ages that we are in a bad way. The bit we're not getting here is the reasoning that it is NL wot done it.

[AlfredJPruffock]

Thank you Alfred. These Tory-fanboys who think that any dissent, or even difference of emphasis, from their anti-NL rant is equivalent to being an apologist for NL faults, are becoming tiresome.

I was also going to ask them if they thought that Peter Jenkins' columns in the late 70s and early 80s were also pro-NL, because that would make him even more insightful that I thought!

But I suppose I am missing the point. The point is to diss NL, and comments that don't fit that agenda are not welcome, and are to be ridiculed by personal attacks.

Even funnier to reflect that one of my good friends is a member of the Tory Cabinet - he also shares your view of where this recession came from !

And it wasnt from Swindon !

[expat]

Even funnier to reflect that one of my good friends is a member of the Tory Cabinet - he aslo shares your view of where this recession came from !

My view is not simplistic. That's what DP and others get wrong: just because I say something is not all NL's fault, doesn't mean that I think it's all Maggie's fault.

Political analysis is not like supporting a team, and cheering them on come what may.

[Doggy Styles]

I can't let you get away with that.

The US problems are one thing, but Gordon Brown has ensured that we are affected as badly as it is possible to be.

First, Brown was at fault 12 years ago for effectively removing supervision of British banks. Up to that time, banks roughly balanced lending with savers' funds. The BoE used to monitor what banks were doing with their lending, and inter-bank movements. It wasn't perfect, but it more or less worked. In Brown's new tri-partite system no-one knew exactly what they were supposed to be doing, no-one did that job, and we now see the results. Our banks ran riot with their own high-risk lending, and trading the high-risk lending of others. That didn't have to happen.

Secondly, Brown has left this country more vulnerable than all other leading developed nations by overspending and borrowing during boom years, a time when we should have been saving to help us through downturns. So we are now in a situation where we have run up debt of nearly 50% GNP, rising fast. The interest payments on that debt alone are enough to rescue a couple of decent sized banks.

This isn't hindsight. Many have pointed out the pitfalls over the years, but everyone else were blinded by the perpetual growth theory coming out of the government, or the price of their houses, or both. Two examples: when Cable raised it in parliament several years ago, Brown told him he didn't know what he was talking about. When the HBOS risk manager raised it with the HBOS board, which he did many times, he was eventually sacked for rocking the boat by a man that worked with Brown on (non-) regulation of banks.

So yes, I blame Gordon Brown and his party, for his interfering incompetence and his inability to run a balanced budget.

[Bagpuss]

My view is not simplistic. That's what DP and others get wrong: just because I say something is not all NL's fault, doesn't mean that I think it's all Maggie's fault.

Political analysis is not like supporting a team, and cheering them on come what may.

Oi, stop stealing my argument

[DimPrawn]

I can't let you get away with that.

The US problems are one thing, but Gordon Brown has ensured that we are affected as badly as it is possible to be.

First, Brown was at fault 12 years ago for effectively removing supervision of British banks. Up to that time, banks roughly balanced lending with savers' funds. The BoE used to monitor what banks were doing with their lending, and inter-bank movements. It wasn't perfect, but it more or less worked. In Brown's new tri-partite system no-one knew exactly what they were supposed to be doing, no-one did that job, and we now see the results. Our banks ran riot with their own high-risk lending, and trading the high-risk lending of others. That didn't have to happen.

Secondly, Brown has left this country more vulnerable than all other leading developed nations by overspending and borrowing during boom years, a time when we should have been saving to help us through downturns. So we are now in a situation where we have run up debt of nearly 50% GNP, rising fast. The interest payments on that debt alone are enough to rescue a couple of decent sized banks.

This isn't hindsight. Many have pointed out the pitfalls over the years, but everyone else were blinded by the perpetual growth theory coming out of the government, or the price of their houses, or both. Two examples: when Cable raised it in parliament several years ago, Brown told him he didn't know what he was talking about. When the HBOS risk manager raised it with the HBOS board, which he did many times, he was eventually sacked for rocking the boat by a man that worked with Brown on (non-) regulation of banks.

So yes, I blame Gordon Brown and his party, for his interfering incompetence and his inability to run a balanced budget.

Wasting your time. The lefties here still think bankrupt Britain is due to the USA.

[expat]

Wasting your time. The lefties here still think bankrupt Britain is due to the USA.

Don't know whom you're talking about, but as for me:

1. I am not a leftie.
2. I don't think bankrupt Britain is anything to do with the USA.

[Bagpuss]

First, Brown was at fault 12 years ago for effectively removing supervision of British banks. Up to that time, banks roughly balanced lending with savers' funds. The BoE used to monitor what banks were doing with their lending, and inter-bank movements. It wasn't perfect, but it more or less worked.

This sounds like made up nonsense, supervision of the banks, sounds like something out of the ex soviet block! Banks Haven't balanced savings with deposits for decades. Ever heard of the credit muliplier? As for the other bit of waffle.. growth of the money supply has never stopped being monitored. Sounds like you half understood something you read in The Sun.

[expat]

This sounds like made up nonsense, supervision of the banks, sounds like something out of the ex soviet block! Banks Haven't balanced savings with deposits for decades. Ever heard of the credit muliplier? As for the other bit of waffle.. growth of the money supply has never stopped being monitored. Sounds like you half understood something you read in The Sun.

No, he approves of government regulation of business. Or does he?

[DimPrawn]

This sounds like made up nonsense, supervision of the banks, sounds like something out of the ex soviet block! Banks Haven't balanced savings with deposits for decades. Ever heard of the credit muliplier? As for the other bit of waffle.. growth of the money supply has never stopped being monitored. Sounds like you half understood something you read in The Sun.

http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/publi...s/1997/048.htm

1997 = New Labour came to power.