Alistair Darling attacks bank bonuses
Updated on 28 September 2009
Chancellor Alistair Darling demands an immediate crackdown on bankers' bonuses in his speech to the Labour party conference in Brighton.
Alistair Darling tried to rally activists at Labour conference, declaring that "greed and recklessness" will never again be allowed to put "the lives of millions of people" at risk.
The chancellor told the conference that he will introduce new legislation this autumn, but that bankers must slash bonuses immediately.
Darling said: "Within months, the country also faces a big choice. A choice not just about who's in government but about values that will shape our country and the opportunities for our people. A choice that will affect every area of our lives, every aspect of our future.
"Let me assure the country - and warn the banks - that there will be no return to the business as usual for them. So in the next few weeks we will introduce legislation to end the reckless culture that puts short-term profits over long-term success."
Mr Darling promised that "it will mean an end to automatic bank bonuses year after year. It will mean an end to immediate payouts for top management. Any bonuses will be deferred over time, so they can be clawed back if they are warranted by long term performance.
"We won't allow greed and recklessness to ever again endanger the whole global economy and the lives of millions of people."
"Populism does not come more de-robed than what we will get on bankers from Labour's pre-election conference," writes Economics correspondent Faisal Islam from the conference. "Much of this is reiterating the steps outlined by the G20. Some of it sits uneasily with the very pay policies enacted by state owned and state controlled banks.
"Many will argue that it's a bit late to be going down this road now. To date, George Osborne has sounded tougher on particularly the public sector bank pay bonanzas."
Darling also spoke of the need to balance spending cuts with a pledge to protect public services. But this is a party now fighting for its political life - so too is Gordon Brown - described by one left wing MP today as a "dead man walking".
