gary reynolds

Without banks, our free market democracy would struggle to operate or cease to exist. This is why th...

Without banks, our free market democracy would struggle to operate or cease to exist. This is why the government has been willing to provide the banks with liquidity, finance and, where necessary, capital in the form of share ownership. Inadequate policies, and the effects of the credit crunch, mean the UK government will raise a net £128bn through gilt issuance in 2008/2009. This is a record and compares with net issuance of £29.2bn in 2007/2008. It is, perhaps, the precarious future for UK public finances that has resulted in the CDS (credit default swap) market making it more expensive...