The banks are bust – but not their executives

SO our economy will remain in the doldrums until our banking system becomes functional?

I saw reality while visiting a branch of one of the larger banks on a recent Friday around mid-day. Two people were being attended at the service desk, but not one customer was to be seen at counters where two cashiers were on duty.

An unusual eerie emptiness, I thought, on what would normally have been the busiest day of the week – making one wonder are mattresses back in vogue.

The previous day’s news didn’t help either.

The bank had unveiled record half-year losses of more than €2bn on top of debt write-offs bringing the total to several billion – not to mention €23bn more bad loans going to NAMA.

If Anglo suffered the most severe effects of the greed virus, the symptoms certainly traversed the financial system. The glaring result – businesses in general are struggling to stay afloat and retain staff, while unable to “deliver” due to lack of overdraft and cash flow facilities.

In the process of all this, bankers are being pampered with billions on top of billions of taxpayers’ money – no questions asked. Their chairmen and executives are among the highest paid in the country. These banking outfits, properly managed, should not have cashflow problems and it’s about time the Government drew the line by demanding they deliver the goods – or else.

You report (August 11) how the Government bailout of the banks had reached more than half of what the country has received from Europe in grant aid since we joined the Common Market nearly 40 years ago.

This summarises the sad story. And consider it in the context of another report on the same day that more than 1,000 desperate people await colon cancer tests for longer than three months because of health cutbacks.

It makes one wonder where our priorities lie and whether it’s time the Government quit office?

James Gleeson

Turtulla

Thurles

Co Tipperary