Will Barclays Bank break the coalition?
There is concern within the coalition government, the Conservative Party and the Liberal Democratic Party that the announcement of Bob Diamond's appointment as the next chief executive of Barclays Group could bring cracks in the coalition to the surface. There is no doubt that a number of MPs would rather see a more neutral person brought into the role of Barclays Bank chief executive with Bob Diamond seen by many as the face of capitalism.
Over the last few months it has become more and more apparent that there are serious disagreements on both sides of the coalition government and David Cameron is stuck in something of a pincer movement. He has to be seen to be "doing the right thing" but any heavy-handed approach toward UK businesses will not be tolerated by business leaders.
If there is one person connected to the UK financial sector who will be pleased to see the name of Bob Diamond in the headlines it will be Sir Fred Goodwin who was ridiculed, demonised and eventually cast aside by the UK government as the "unacceptable face" of capitalism. At the end of the day Sir Fred Goodwin was the figurehead of the Royal Bank of Scotland although many believe he was made something of a scapegoat by the company, the industry and the authorities.
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