Where's the bonus in Tories' 'People's Bonus' plan?

So George Osborne has finally revealed some inkling as to his plans for the future of RBS - and their mediocrity is palpable. Where's the vision, the innovation or even the slightest smidgen of common sense?

The Tories' latest 'idea' (let's not call it a policy) is to sell back shares in the bank we own 84% of to the people who've already paid for it - on the cheap. Ooo, but Monsieur Osbourne, with these treats you vill be spoiling us!



All this announcement reveals is the Tories' desire to get rid of RBS as quickly as possible without having to deal with the 'elephant in the room' - how to clean up RBS (metaphorically or literally) and kickstart a thriving post-carbon economy for the UK. Instead here's an immature, populist shot across the bough, a desperate attempt to boost nose-diving election poll numbers.

Is it too much to ask that any party wishing to form our next Government should actually reveal how they're going to ensure that RBS returns the taxpayers' £70 billion bail-out without bankrupting the planet all over again?

The elephant in the room

Labour's approach so far as been a pitiful hands-off 'let's let the banks continue what they've been doing all along and hope they turn a profit' while turning a blind eye to the massive economic, environmental and social cost of the risks RBS is taking with taxpayers money.

From high-risk oil extraction in Canada's tar sands which emits 3 times more carbon dioxide than conventional oil to pipeline-building and exploration in war-torn African countries or pristine Arctic refuges, RBS continues to lead the way in the financing of fossil fuels regardless of climate change or the human rights impacts of their operations.  Meanwhile, who's lending to innovative UK businesses and those developing energy solutions that would create jobs, secure our energy supply and reduce our carbon emissions?

RBS remains Europe's dirtiest bank, loaning out billions of our public money to projects and companies intent on turning a profit at the expense of people and planet. In my view, this outrageous misuse of public money trumps even the greed and immorality RBS will show later this week when it announces over £1.3 billion in bonuses for its bankers. Nature doesn't do bailouts - and it is the same taxpayers who bailed out RBS last year who will foot the bill for the global climate catastrophe being fuelled by their current investment strategy.


Pitiful Politics

Osborne's announcement is just another in a long line of meaningless, ill thought-through gimmicks which do nothing to tackle the root causes of our current financial or climatic woes.  Does he really think British people are stupid enough to pay for a bad investment twice? RBS shares are worth 30% less today than they were when the Treasury bought them - and its current investment strategy may secure enough short-term profit to pay a few bankers' bonuses, but in the long-term RBS will fail again unless our next Government steps in to reshape their lending priorities.  

Does it make economic sense to use taxpayers' money to destroy taxpayers' assets? How will our next Government ensure RBS addresses this dilemma?   If they want to ensure that taxpayers' receive a 'bonus' on our £70 billion investment in RBS shares, sooner or later the Treasury (whether Tory- or Labour-controlled) will have to answer these questions.   I've yet to hear any sensible answers coming out of either major party.