RBS repayment 'could take a decade'

Ousted boss Stephen Hester today warned it could take up to a decade for the British taxpayers to be repaid its £45bn (€52bn) stake in bailed-out Royal Bank of Scotland.

Mr Hester, whose departure from the 81% state-owned bank is due before the end of this year, told the Sunday Telegraph that privatising RBS was a long-term project.