A Banking Bonus For Everyone

Definitely a stunt and one that calls into question the Shadow Chancellor's credentials. True taxpayers have had to come to the rescue of RBS and Lloyds but Lloyds shareholders have lost billions of value as a result of the HBOS rescue. Any attempt by the government to sell off their stake to 'taxpayers' as a group at below the market price would surely depress the price and be unfair to existing shareholders.

Presumably, this morning's rising share price partly reflects the market's judgment that the Osborne sell-off won't happen.

George Osbourne is a Snake Oil salesman. He is trying to flog to us what we have already paid for! If he were serious about his "peoples bonus" he should simply distribute our shares to us without any further charge - we have already bought these shares through taxation. If I wanted to buy shares in LBG or or RBS they are availalble at a knock down price on the LSE.
Is there an election due? May 6th for anyone interested.....

"Defer bonuses for 3-5 years to get back at the bankers" - Surely if a banker can manage to "scrape though" 3 - 5 years without bonuses how is that going to change anything. The banker will still get his bonus and after the deferred period he is back into a rolling program getting his bonus anyway each year, all be it delayed.

George Osbourne must think we're all FOOLS. If he got into power and was able to sell cheap shares in RBS & LBG - who would be first in the queue?
His Tory compatriots with very deep pockets who would buy up the shares in their tens of thousands; sit on them for a couple of years till the banks recover and then "make a killing". The man or woman in the stree who could afford to buy only a few shares would more than likely have to sell before they became profitable.

This is a long way off, five years or so. I'm not sure though why the comments here are so negative. It's thanks to the tax payers that these banks are still here, so why should there not be an opportunity to buy the shares in the future for the general public?

The share ownership in this country has dropped markedly in recent years. The 1980's gave people opportunities to own shares, which I was one. I have no regrets doing so. Sure they are riskier that cash but speculate to accumulate and learn from your mistakes, as the Motley Fool canonises.

To say 'why should we pay for what we already own' is just nonsense. You are paying to buy from other people who effectively give up their right. Plenty complained in this way during privatizations of the past and then went quiet as their shares rose. A case of short term socialism. Of course not all were long term holds but again that's shares for you, riskier and needs managing.

Me thinks some are more worried about having their share values diminished through dilution rather than seeing this as an opportunity.

There and again it's an opportunity long in the future, but worth considering when it does.

Hi Bruce. What would £800 pounds be roughly worth in today's money? You must have been confident with your own research by investing so much in your first share purchase.

I used to have £6 but Alistair made me spend it on a fiver from his chums in the city when their lavish lifestyle was in jeopardy. Now, as a bonus, George wants me to pay his chums in the city to sell my £5 to his chums in the shires for £4.

If you want to get back at the banksters, ban fractional reserves!

Max878. Thanks for your comments

The banks are no more publicly owned than someone who has just 'bought' a house with a mortgage. They may have the deeds but also owe a lot of money which one day has to be paid back (to the banks? sic), much like the 'owners' of certain football clubs.

I'm assuming that the plan of whoever gets in power at the next election is to pass the part public ownership of those banks back into private hands, when the time is right, to pay off the debt accumulated to bail them out. The general process will be the same whether the public have the 'benefit' of cheaper shares or not.

No I think its better to at least allow the public the opportunity to benefit as well. It won't happen for years of course but as the UK is running as big a budget deficit as Greece (% of GDP wise) something gotta give.

I applaud your cynicism, we are talking about politicians after all. Trouble is where is the brighter future? I can't see it. But for me you've got to start with the man with the hands on the wheel, and Brown has got to go.