UK Chancellor: “Making the loan has enabled us to set that condition and to be part of the discussion…”

As the UK’s Loans to Ireland Bill passes on to the House of Lords for a second reading – debate here – the BBC’s Robert Peston notes that The interest rate on the £3.25bn being made available in eight lumps over the next three years will be 2.29% above the cost for the British government of borrowing for seven and a half years. Which means that a profit is more or less guaranteed for Britain. George Osborne today estimated that …

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Bank of Ireland – Government takes a majority stake

… according to Reuters anyway and coming after a long plunge in today’s trading and a decision to hold a firesale of the family silver. They’re stopping short of full nationalisation though. It’s casting fresh doubt on the credibility of the stress-testing that both the Bank of Ireland and Allied Irish Bank went through in July. Not much more detail than that available at the moment, but we’ll keep you posted. adminA slightly inhuman presence that bans bad comments and works …

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