It is difficult to have an opinion on Royal Bank of Scotland and the "bonus" set aside for its Boss, Stephen Hester, without upsetting somebody.
For our friends overseas that may not be aware of the story, back in 2008 Gordon "the moron" Brown bailed out the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) to the tune of several tens of thousands of millions of pounds; I really cannot be bothered to find the exact figure.
Needless to say, since Brown's intervention, the taxpayer investment in RBS has lost £23,000 Million of its value. It is also important to note, that the political wet rags that are the two Eds's (Milliband and Balls) both served in the Brown cabinet, and both could be classed as complicit in signing the contract employing Mr Hester.
However, the Ed's have called for the British government to rescind their contractual commitments- made during their tenure- and not pay a £1,000,000 bonus to Hester- their employee.
Whatever the rights or wrongs of how much an individual should earn, the fact is Mr Hester took the high ground, after some prodding, and declined the claim to the £1,000,000 his board deemed he earned (I presume a taxpayer appointed board?).
Fair enough, one may say.
However, since the announcement, the shares of RBS closed down some 3.5%, and thus wiping off some £100 Million from the value of taxpayers investment.
Furthermore, should Mr. Hester decide that his job is no longer tenable, just who will fill his place running a Zombie Bank, in which the British Taxpayer had some £100,000 million invested?
The Ed's may have won a short term political point on behalf of their downtrodden socialist electorate, but it will be the hard working taxpayers that have to pick up the bill.
Typical socialist thinking: Make everybody equally poor.
After all, the UK has a 50% higher tax rate, so would not a very large percentage of the bonus found its way back into the Treasury?
As Mrs T put it below, "Socialist would rather the poor were poorer, as long as they rich were less rich."
From Mrs Thatchers last day as Prime Minister.
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