Dear goanet readers In this post, I would like to write on all the crisis our community are having to deal with here in the United Kingdom.
In early June, there were two, the water crisis and the Euro crisis. The water crisis was solved by natural elements (not the weatherman) when we had the wettest drought in history! The Euro crisis remains and while the price of beer is around 5 euros a bottle, it will come as no surprise to me that Melvyn will decide to holiday in Goa yet again. While I was away from the United Kingdom, there was a third crisis, customers of some banks were unable to access money for their daily bread as the computers in these banks completely broke down. However, even before this crisis could be "put to bed" and customers given the necessary assurances, a much more wider and serious banking crisis was bubbling away, the rate-fixing LIBOR scandal at Barclays Bank. LIBOR refers to the interest rate between banks when they lend to each other. Unfortunately, this scandal is going to affect many of us in one way or another. Many of our community work for Barclays Bank and others have current accounts, mortgages, savings and other investments with them some from loyality to this bank from colonial days. All of us must have watched in horror as incredibly one by one of these mature, highly educated, highly paid banking chiefs fought to maintain their credibility and respectability. They eventually decided to resign in order to stop the reputation of this great banking institution from laying on the trading floor in tatters. The most important question, one that not only I but the rest of the country would like to know is just how much of the rate-fixing of the LIBOR rate was known by senior management and precisely when it was known by them? An investigation started this afternoon, broadcast live, with the former Chief Executive of Barclays, Bob Diamond facing questioning. It will be interesting to see what the conclusions of these investigations are and how, if any, will it affect Mr Diamond's leaving financial package. We are thankful that many of our community who are employed by Barclays were able to return to their work stations. This was not the case when the Bank of Credit and Commerce (BCCI) was closed overnight some years ago and many of our community who worked for them lost their jobs. What is needed is an urgent change in the law and a zero tolerance of staff involved in such practices. Rose Fernandes Thornton Heath, Surrey, United Kingdom 4 July 2012
