Goodwin isn’t the only one to blame (From York Press)

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Goodwin isn’t the only one to blame

9:30am Friday 3rd February 2012 in Letters

IT’S not just the former Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) boss at fault. Banks only exist through people. People like us who have worked hard all our life to better ourselves, to put food on the table and to provide a future for our children.

We trust banks to look after our money and to use our money to make the economy and country stronger.

But when our country becomes weak and our economy crumbles and our banking system fails, we are told we must make sacrifices, take pay cuts, work longer and retire later.

Now some of you may say that is just how it is. In 2012, five of the biggest banks in the UK are expected to make profits of £35 billion pounds. Is that fair at a time when unemployment figures are expected to rise to 2.85 million this year and to increase to 2.9 million in 2013?

Is a transaction tax on the banks really that bad? A figure of 0.05 per cent doesn’t seem a lot, but could raise £20 billion pounds a year. What could our Government do with that money?

Ryan Ward, Green Lane, Strensall, York.

• I THINK it is the duty of the people of this country to feel sorry for Fred Goodwin.

His crime was to bring the RBS to the verge of bankruptcy ably assisted by his board of directors and the politicians of the day.

These people who bestowed the knighthood on Fred have now deemed it inappropriate and taken it away, thus reducing him to the rank of plain Mister, even though it was their idea to bestow it on him in the first place.

But as usual there has to be a fall guy and unfortunately it was Fred. I am sure he is upset about this outcome of events and I only hope he will be able to manage on the £1,800 a day he receives for his pension.

I can only surmise that those who decided to reduce him to the ranks are the same people who overlooked the expenses scandal that supposedly rocked our Parliament, only to see a very small number prosecuted or in some cases even named.

TJ Ryder, Priory Gardens, North Lane, Dringhouses, York.

Comments(7)

Maquis says...
11:48am Fri 3 Feb 12

Maybe it wasn't all Fred's fault, but he was the head of the company and paid handsomely for the privilege. Part of the reason that he was paid this extreme amount of money was because he was responsible for whatever happened, and so it is right that he looses his honors, he was top of the tree, so he had further to fall.

As for the Transaction tax that Ryan mentions, it will be great as long as all the other countries do it too. If this happens I will support it fully, however banking is done on computers, generally without any physical objects to trade, so can easily be done in almost any country in the world. Most of the big banks already have offices in other countries and it would be very easy just to do the same work elsewhere. If we keep penalizing the banks now, they will just leave and that would be catastrophic for the economy as they give us about 7% of our total tax revenue.
Also take Stephen Hester, he was not responsible for the collapse, he was not a banker at the time, he was brought in to sort the mess out, and I hear reports that he is starting to do just that. He took a job paying far less than most in the sector, but was vilified for being offered a hefty bonus which then he had the good sense not to take.
I do think though that bonuses should only be paid for success and not just as part of the salary. If they are to be paid, then just incorporate them as salary and only pay a bonus when targets are met.

Yes it would be nice to punish the wrongdoers but lets not cut off our nose to spite our face. The banks more towards our schools, hospitals and welfare state than any other industry in this country.