TAXPAYERS’ money will not be used to bail out Landsbanki Guernsey customers as the Policy Council puts new schools and health care first.
The island appears increasingly isolated over its stance towards those affected by the Icelandic banking crisis, with the Isle of Man yesterday debating proposals which would see it pump up to £150m. of state money into an improved depositors’ protection scheme which would help out Kaupthing Singer and Friedlander customers there.
‘While we continue to do all we can to ensure that Landsbanki Guernsey depositors receive all their money back, our position has been clear from the outset that we would not propose the use of taxpayers’ money to support any payout,’ said Chief Minister Lyndon Trott yesterday.
‘We need to spend taxpayers’ money on essential infrastructure developments for the people of Guernsey – new schools and health care – and that will continue to be the priority of the States.’
Deputy Trott travels to Helsinki this weekend to sign tax exchange agreements with the Nordic nations – including Iceland.
It raises the prospect of face-to-face talks with the Icelandic government over its role in paying back savings to those with deposits in Landsbanki Guernsey.
The faint prospect of help from any local depositors’ compensation scheme was also effectively ruled out by Treasury minister Charles Parkinson yesterday – he expects the bank to be in liquidation before the scheme kicks in.
Daniel Herzberg, 33, who set up action group iwantmymoneylandsbanki.com, said everyone was talking about confidence.
‘Do depositors have confidence that money put into Guernsey is safe? The answer at the moment is categorically no. The statement by the Isle of Man is all about protecting confidence in that jurisdiction.
‘The Isle of Man action is perfect, it’s concrete.
‘It’s them saying, “here is money we have put in to help you”, and that is what Guernsey needs to be doing.’
It left Guernsey as the only government to let savers down, he added.
‘We [Landsbanki Guernsey customers] have all been promised 30% and I think it would be interesting to ask those depositors whether they would be prepared to invest that money back into Guernsey.’
Deputy Trott said the Isle of Man developments were interesting and he looked forward to seeing the resolutions and detail behind it.
‘Funding from the state for a depositor compensation scheme is not something we are contemplating in Guernsey. We have been channeling our energies into an appropriate bank-funded scheme.’
Deputy Matt Fallaize was one member of a group of politicians who have been pressing for a such a scheme.
‘The action that the government in the Isle of Man may now have to take underlines how preferable it is that any protection scheme has the full support of banks and that they agree to fund it – before it is established,’ he said.
‘On the other hand, we shouldn’t overlook the urgency with which the Isle of Man apparently feels able to act. And our group of concerned deputies will be pursuing the Policy Council’s commitment to real urgency over this matter during question time at next week’s States meeting.’
Article posted on 24th October, 2008 - 2.30pm
21 Article Comments
First he travelled to China when Landsbanki Guernsey imploded. Now, instead of staying in Guernsey to reassure depositors that the States will ensure that they are repaid, Deputy Trott travels to Helsinki to sign tax exchange agreements with the Nordic nations – including, of all nations, Iceland. What can I say? I am speechless.
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So we’re being side-lined yet again!
Thanks for nothing Deputy Trott!
Enjoy your freebie trip – we can’t afford trips any more.
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while I am supportive of any attempts by depositors to get their money back the tax payer cannot be expected to pick up any deficit. It well published, for those that took the time to research their financial decisions, that depositing money in a country outside a UK supported bank had a higher risk.
Money put in a bank should be 100% safe but clearly people outside the control of guernsey were gambling.
No deposit protection scheme can offer a 100% guarantee. Not even the Treasury of the UK can so how can we. All we can do is offer a competitive protection scheme can make sure we regulate the directors of local banks better.
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What a pity Chief Minister Trott has no sympathy for people who have saved all their lives and trusted a Guernsey registered bank with their money. He is very short sighted in seeking political popularity with “Schools and Health” first as neglecting Guernsey’s duty to its savers will deter anyone investing in Guernsey ever again.
I write as one who may lose a third of my retirement savings in Landsbanki. If I had chosen any other jurisdiction than Guernsey to bank with I would have a decent chance of getting it back.
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What I would like to know is why couldn’t the tax agreements be delivered from Helsinki by courea?
How much is our CM’s buget allowance for expenses. It appears that he will be a well traveled man by the end of his office. That is if the people of Guernsey don’t get sick of him like a lot are and requests him to go.
Happy to look after external influences but to hell with your own people.
Deputy Trott wise up. A lot of the public are starting to.
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GBG – Good Bye Guernsey.
Or perhaps Deputy Trott should be on the trot.
Does this man have no idea in terms of how important the Financial Industry is to Guernsey?
Or maybe he’s simply fiddling whilst something burns.
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How wonderful of Deputy Trott to show such caring socialism on an Island which has capitalism as its cornerstone! Lyndon certainly doesn’t put the “Trott” into Trotter. This time next year, we won’t be millionaires!
This is now not about the Guernsey Government paying to bail savers of a failed bank out, it is now about paying a “marketing” fee to sure up confidence in Guernsey as a banking nation. There is very little “big picture” thinking from our friends in the States. As the world gets more competitive it will hurt us more and more.
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Mark
Leave the man alone for goodness sake.
He is carrying out his duties as required of him.
Remember how liar Blair swanned around the world on his farewell jaunt at taxpayers expense.He left behind able minions to run the country in his absence ( John Prescott for one )
The whole world hasn’t stopped because of the L word and I’m sure work is progressing on finding the best solution for Guernsey and the unfortunate depositors in Deputy Trott’s enforced absence
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It was an interesting comment, wasn’t it? Is he trying to portray that he is championing the causes of social infrastructure? The same man who advised us that because we were ’stealing a march’ on zero-ten we would have to expect ‘belt-tightening’ across the public sector?
Is he trying to suggest that one of the options to introduce a DCS was to divert funds from the schools and hospitals, and he bravely stood up and said NO whilst threatening all and sundry with remedial [expletive deleted] orthodoncy?
Hmm. Could this be an effort to regain some local popularity, after all he is now only known for wanting to be popular around the hallowed halls of the well-monied and business leaders who control the fate of our Island?
There’s no doubt that he needs to sign these agreements and grin and bluster at how well Guernsey is doing for itself, that is his remit, but an ill thought out quote does little to assuage the fears of locals who are thinking they are powerless to have any say on how Guernsey is run and by whom.
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Paul and Mark
The negotiations between Guernsey and the Nordic countries regarding the Tax Exchange Information Agreements will have started ages ago, probably even before Landsbanki bought the Cheshire Building Society’s Guernsey business, so don’t place too much emphasis on the irony of that situation.
Incidentally, if you look at the bigger picture and this week’s renewed and extensive attack on offshore tax havens by the French and German governments in particular, coupled with the probability of Obama getting elected to the White House in 2 weeks time, the importance of Guernsey voluntarily entering into Tax Exchange Information Agreements with as many countries as possible cannot be under-estimated. The likes of Switzerland and Singapore, who steadfastly refuse to exchange tax information with other countries, and who are rightly being castigated for being unco-operative, have some massive challenges ahead of them, as do other offshore centres who refuse to co-operate and who thereby actively promote tax evasion. Guernsey does no such thing and, despite criticism by some locally who think we co-operate too much, Guernsey’s only hope of avoiding the same imminent fate as some other offshore centres is to continue along this path of co-operation. In that context, the Chief Minister’s trip to Norway to sign these agreements is arguably far more important to Guernsey’s future than many other things that he could be doing right now.
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Max Brumby
Well put. I doubt that Lyndon Trott will be complaining though. He is having a right laugh at everybody. How much money is he costing the tax payers?
He is definately some player that is for sure. Everything he goes near turns sour and ends up costing us considerably more. If this isn’t enough he is now our unelected chief minister. To add insult to injury he is swanning around whilst people he should be representing and working for he is happy to ignore and live the high life thanks to them whilst leaving them sick with worry du to their losses. What next. Maybe he will come back stating that the future looks so bright he needs to keep wearing his shades. Even in the rain. In his world anyway. It would be nice to have a vote to see how many of the public would like to finance him in his endevours? I think the only place he would trott to, out on his deaf ear.
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David
I agree. It is right to do this, and should continue. Guernsey must be proactive in being cooperative unless we are to be put in the same baskets as the clearly corrupt offshore centres elsewhere in the world.
My personal view, though, is that a Chief Minister represents the electorate, not the finance industry. The electorate is not the tax regime. It could be a case that his position should be called something else and then people would not confuse external relations with home governance.
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So many people seenm to want Guernsey and its taxpayers suffer for their investment / deposit choice.
Fortunately decisions to invest much of the £128 million of bank deposits will be taken on hard financial grounds and not emotion.
People will be sorry for those who might have lost money in Landsbanki Guernsey, but I suspect many of the “future” depositors will be looking at what protection exists at the time, and the good range of quality deposit takers. They will also learn from LG depositors to do their own research and spread the risk.
I feel sure Guernsey will be there amongst the leading fiancial centres despite the wishes of those who want to see the island suffer
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Like Foreign Affairs Minister ? I have always been of the view that the Policy Council should merely need a good Chairman, and that is no need for the title of Chief Minister. As at present, the elected House would vote for one of their own to be the Chairman of the Policy Council but with no need for the Chief Minister title if the role itself is no different.
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Hmm. Does the article REALLY mean that schools will get priority? Only SOME schools, it would seem. NEW schools perhaps! What about existing ones that are performing well and serving their community well which which are now deemed only fit for closure. If that is Guernsey’s mentality for deciding upon its financial priorities, then the whole way in the which the States makes decisions for fiscal distribution is seriously flawed!
Another case where leaders in the states are not representing the electorate.
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Well it certainly isnt ALL schools being put first is it. Somewhere along the line someone has got slightly confused with their sums. Closing St Sampsons will apparently save £250k a year although full details are still not being released to enable the general public to work out how this has been calculated but there is money to spend millions on 2 brand new schools!!! Had money been spent to maintain the schools over the years and updated a little at a time surely such a big spend wouldnt be needed. With several hundred homes to be built in the Vale parish in future years you cant tell me that the Vale school will be able to cope or will we be made to put up with class sizes of over 30 and therefore the children will suffer as the level of education they receive will not be at the standard it is now. I thought we wanted our children to be contributing to society not a drain on it, therefore invest in there education which needs to be done right from the start not at 16!
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The money which rightly belongs to us Landsbanki
Guernsey victims has to be restored to us. The taxpayers of Guernsey do not need to sacrifice all to help us get our funds back. Just put pressure on your government to use some force and imagination to help us fight for our savings.
Your island’s financial industry is important to you all in the short and long term. Unfortunately your reputation as a safe haven stinks right now, and I believe the solution is in your hands.
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It would appear that those in need don’t always get. Those who do get, do so at the expense of others – new school buildings versus the closure of other schools which are doing fine just as they are. A little bit of monetary redistribution would allow ALL schools to be given priority – after all, £250k ( is it really this much???) is nothing to maintain the high standards of learning and communuity relationships. Is it right to allow only some schools to prosper? Shouldn’t all schools be given the same opportunity for excellence? Especially in the formative years – I was under the impression that these were the most important in a child’s educational development……!
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I’d like to know why the States don’t pay for the upkeep of the Catholic schools in the island as each family have to pay £100 per year for their child to attend the school.
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I would happily pay £100 a year if it kept St Sampsons Infant school open a bargain compared to Nursery costs.
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Poppy, if your choice is to keep your children out of the States main-stream education facilties, because of your religious persuasion, why should I be asked to pay for that decision?
If I was to organise a school for the children of Marxists, would you contribute…..??
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