Oh dear - Bradford & Bingley nationalisation looks increasingly likely

baby_boomer

amcluesent wrote: »

What are the chances all of B&B's records are passed over to the taxman? HMRC will love to get all the info on BTL landlords and cross-match to last years tax returns!

I do hope so!

lostinrates

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=1183149

Sir Humphrey,

I thought when reading the thread I've linked to how apt it was for illustrating how using the system to the maximum was seen as 'our right' and why I feel so strongly opposed to many a laudable intention. A few people want to help everybody, a lot of people want to help themselves.

Sir_Humphrey

lostinrates wrote: »

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=1183149

Sir Humphrey,

I thought when reading the thread I've linked to how apt it was for illustrating how using the system to the maximum was seen as 'our right' and why I feel so strongly opposed to many a laudable intention. A few people want to help everybody, a lot of people want to help themselves.

As Neverdespairgirl says on that thread, it points out neatly the problem with means-tested benefits. That problem would be avoided with more universal benefits. Of course, that would mean more taxes (although the money would be recouped in old age). The alternative would be not to provide any care, and let poorer pensioners starve to death when they can no longer look after themselves. That is why policy design and detail is so important.

I plan to get old one day, so I do not begrudge spending on the elderly.

I don't see how the OP is any worse than a middle class person employing a "creative" tax accountant.

baby_boomer

baby_boomer wrote: »

Banks are desperate for savings at the moment, aren't they? It's the capital they're short of.

A couple of years before the credit crunch, Britannia BS bought the Bristol & West savings business plus branches for around 3% of the balances. I acknowledge that at the time this was considered pricey by other potential bidders, but Britannia needed the cash for regulatory reasons and so was prepared to pay.

If it was Santander, you can imagine the cost cutting exercise that could follow were they to own Abbey/A&L and B&B. They could make it work for them, add to their short term capital and cherry pick the best branches and staff for their combined network.

Probably my best "prediction" to date on these boards.

It was Santander.

And they appear to have paid just under 3% of the savings balances . [£600m+]

I'm not going to out argue Generali that often, so I might as well make a song and dance about it when it happens!

WTF?_2

sabretoothtigger wrote: »

I hate to agree with brown but in general the economy is or was fine but the credit markets and banks have screwed up big time.
The idea is to contain the damage, if they fail on this then yea it'll screw the economy

The economy was built on the 'free money' that the banks were giving out.

And it had started to falter long before this crisis hit. House prices have been falling and unemployment rising for some time now. Inflation has been picking up pace over the course of the year.

To make matters worse, government policy seems to have assumed that the boom was going to go on indefinitely. Now that things have reversed, the economy is in a horribly exposed state. Little room for interest rate cuts on account of strengthening inflation, no savings in the public kitty and borrowing at record levels just as taxes are falling off - at a time when you ideally need to be increasing public spending.

Generali

Sir_Humphrey wrote: »

Tax cuts benefit the rich more than the poor (usually).

Actually it's my experience that tax cuts favour middle earners. The rich don't pay much tax as they can afford to avoid it. The poor don't as they don't have much money to pay.

These are exactly the sorts of people that governments fete at election time ('hard working families') before soaking them for every penny they can for the next 5 years.

mewbie_2

Right. Checks thread title to make sure we have already gone off topic, before launching into mini rant.

Hard working families? I have yet to come across anyone who actually does a full days work. They turn up, have a chat, a coffee, wander about, log in, have another chat, a laugh, check their internet shopping, take and make personal phone calls, break for lunch, read an email, arrange an evening staff get together, complain about being overworked and sod off home. Oh yes, and spend half the day on MSE.

And this is pretty much the British standard way of doing a days 'work'. No wonder we don't actually make anything anymore. If these 'hard working families' actually did a days work, just one day a week, our productivity would double.

neverdespairgirl

Sir_Humphrey wrote: »

Governments running a constant balanced budget is for the fairies and economic illiterates.

We would, however, be in a much better position now had the govt. not run up such massive defecits when things were good, leaving little in the kitty now they are not.

Microstar_2

mewbie wrote: »

Hard working families? I have yet to come across anyone who actually does a full days work. They turn up, have a chat, a coffee, wander about, log in, have another chat, a laugh, check their internet shopping, take and make personal phone calls, break for lunch, read an email, arrange an evening staff get together, complain about being overworked and sod off home. Oh yes, and spend half the day on MSE.

And this is pretty much the British standard way of doing a days 'work'. No wonder we don't actually make anything anymore. If these 'hard working families' actually did a days work, just one day a week, our productivity would double.

What a bizarre post. Where do you work? Can I get a job there please?

sabretoothtigger

FSA decides banks are liable for bb losses. Anyone know what a viable bank is nowadays

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/robertpeston/2008/09/bb_collapse_to_cost_city_9bn.html

up to a staggering £14bn - would fall on the banking industry. For taxpayers to lose a penny Bradford and Bingley's future losses would have to be unthinkably huge.
The reason taxpayers are protected is that on Saturday the board of the Finanacial Services Authority ruled that B&B was unable to pass the test of being a viable bank, and therefore a claim was triggered on the insurance scheme for bank depositors, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.