Good idea, except Labour's punative tax policy prevents saving.

steve tea, manchester, cheshire

the next bank to fail is the CO-OP. Look closely at its support to Labour Party candidates via the COOP society and you will understand that for years it has offered the idea of the old fashioned ethical bank but without the reality.

Madame Ping, Lonodon, Uk

Leave it at £35k and let the bank pay extra insurance for £50k or £100k cover.

JC, London, UK

I think it is unquestionable that we will see a few major
bank failures. They tried to hide the mess by inflating
money supply, but they just delayed the inevitable. Interest rates mean average is 8%, we're going much higher. Havn't had the recession or job losses yet. Just when? Now? 3 years?

Reg, Sevenoaks,

Forget that, i just read that some £730 million pounds was
spent by civil servants at the MOD on entertaining??? in one year???

I mean who at the Treasury authorises this kind of thing when so many soldiers are dying because of poor equipment?

john, London,

WHERE IS THE MONEY COMING FROM?

This Government, which didn't save when it could have, has taken us to the limit of our credit, so CANNOT rescue the depositors in a failed major bank, not even at the £35K limit.

Noel Falconer MEcon, COUIZA, France

The complete opposite to what the Financial Times are saying today 2nd June 2008.
The FT say due to the extra costs involved to the Banks our Mr Darling is going to leave things as they are for the time being.
We will see who is nearer the mark later on today(tuesday).
£50,000 would be far better!.

David Diggins, Derby., England.

Is this just for Labour voters?

Bry Barnes, Somerset, Uk

maybe they have done the maths between the government and the banks and decided that raising the level wont affect the outcome too much as far as their coffers are concerned. they dont do these things for no reason
food for thought

dave o malley, bolton,

Banks and the government are thick as thieves - and I use that phrase deliberately. The government likes us to keep all our money where it can get its hands on it; and the banks need government to force us to use their "services". The usual quasi-socialist mess, with no real competition or quality.

Tom Welsh, Basingstoke,

The increase of guarantee from the first £35,000 to £50,000 is good news for savers but it would be better if the new limit were higher and index-linking the guarantee to help it keep pace with inflation.

Kam Hong Leung, Rotherhithe, London

Now taxpayers with no savings will be paying, through direct and indirect taxation, for those guarantees.

Ewan Lamont, Edinburgh, Scotland

Although this is welcome news it doesn't go far enough. Shareholders, not savers put their money at risk, and it is shareholders not savers that reap the rewards of the risk.
Savers tend to be risk adverse and accept smaller returns. It is not unreasonable to expect your savings to be 100% safe.

AndyN, Reading,

Somebody seems to knows something. It is no surprise that certain Banks are sailing close to the wind.
They usually close ranks very swiftly at the first of any problems but now I am not so sure.

V Cooper, Yeovil, UK

They sound worried. Is something in the pipeline -- something they feel the have no control over? Furthermore, if there were bank failures, how would they afford to compensate depositors? And how long would the compensatory process take? Could inflation wipe out the value of compensation?

Michael Anthony, Birmingham, UK

Is this a sign that another bank is about to fail?

Chuck, London, UK