Personally, I think that Robert Peston is part responsible for the downfall of Northern Rock and Scotland`s two largest Banks. His style of reporting and sensationalism has instilled panic and worsened the situation to the point of catastrophe.The red downward arrows day after day on the BBC news programmes have doubtless been partly to blame for the downward spiral of the shareprices of RBS & HBOS
It`s all very well wingeing about charges and, I agree that in some, but not all, cases they were excessive. But RBS was the largest contributor in taxes to Scotland`s economy as well as being a major employer
Also, despite what Pesto says, the taxpayer as of 13 October, does not own 60 percent of RBS. This is typical of the sensationalist misinformation he is spreading.
RBS is offering to sell to its shareholders and selected institutions ordinary shares at a fixed price of 65.5p per share. The government is underwriting the issue i.e they will take up any shares unsold and the total ultimately purchased by the government nearer the end of the year i.e. those not taken up by the private sector, will determine the percentage the goverment or "taxpayer" will own.
It is to be hoped that it will be a minority shareholding.
It is all too often forgotten that many of the shareholders are employees or ex-employees like myself who had built up a (relatively modest in the scheme of things but vitally important to the individual) shareholding through sharesave schemes with a view to supplementing pension when the time comes. These unfortunate people many of whom are/were on modest salaries have lost about 90 percent of their life savings and may lose all if the Banks are nationalised fully which may be the ultimate outcome if this continued attack continues.
While the scottish banks may not have been blameless, it has not been widely publicised that much of the current problem arises from legislatation put in place in the USA a number of years ago compelling the US Banks to lend to citizens with poor credit ratings, low ability to repay etc for house purchase and it is the securitised packages containing mortgages arising from this U S policy that the Banks througout the world have purchased and which have proved to have been hornet`s nests.
From many years of working for RBS, far from being reckless, they were extremely prudent as regards mortgage and business lending - sometimes embarrassinly so.
While I have no sympathy for the overpaid executives, many of the rank and file staff have lost substanially while Scotland will suffer from loss of tax revenue and spending power if jobs are lost.
OK rant over but please stop kicking the Bnaks when they are down and almost out,
