When will the government sell Northern Rock?
Despite assurances about Northern Rock will not be run any differently to commercial banks in the UK it seems as though an increase in repossession numbers, far and above the sector average, would indicate a possible change of government strategy. There are concerns that those now in control of the bank are looking to reduce the number of mortgage defaults simply by repossessing homes at risk, dumping them on the open market, and raising as much money as possible to repay tax payer loans.
However, at this rate there is every chance that once the taxpayer loan (or as much possible) has been repaid that there will literally be no business to sell on. While not seen as official policy, there has always been a suspicion that the bank was actually being wound down. In many ways the government is in a no win situation as failure to repay the loan would incur the wrath of taxpayers and an overzealous policy with regards to those in mortgage default would also attract unwelcome headlines.
Even though the authorities had little choice but to take control of Northern Rock it will continue to be a serious headache for the government for some time to come.
Share this..
Related stories
FTSE 100 companies request change in pension regulations
Tesco has come forward to ask the UK government to change the laws on pension payments and allow companies to reduce payouts where applicable. The ongoing demise of the UK economy and the UK stock market has placed significant pressure on the UK pension industry and many major companies are suffering. To give you an example of the current situation, Royal Bank of Scotland is currently valued at ju...
Read MoreUK manufacturing slides again but pace of decline is slowing
The UK manufacturing industry declined again in January although the rate of decline has slowed from recent months. However, there are serious concerns that the industry is in a severe downward spiral amid claims that domestic demand has evaporated and vital overseas markets have yet to kick in despite the massive reduction in the sterling exchange rate.
In truth the sector has been...
Is your data safe with the government?
In another seriously embarrassing gaffe it has been announced that a memory stick containing highly confidential passwords to the government's main social service website was found in a pub car park. This resulted in the government website being closed down for a short while and has yet again increased concern amongst the UK public with regards to government services.
When you consi...
One-in-ten adults would fail a simple personal finance exam
Recent research by Abbey Current Accounts has revealed that as many as one-in-ten British adults would score less than 40 per cent in a simple personal finance examination..Abbey arranged for 1031 adults to answer 10 simple questions taken from an examination paper with an equivalent difficulty level difficulty to a GCSE. The results highlight a worrying absence of basic personal finance skills am...
Read MoreMoney can't buy success in Dubai
If there is one state in the world which confirms the opinion that you can't buy success, at this moment in time anyways, it would have to be Dubai. Despite the fact that the Dubai economy has literally risen from nothing to become one of the former hotspots of the worldwide investment market this was done against a backdrop of ever-growing debt. The ruling State family have built up around $80 bi...
Read More