It's all very well blaming the government, who are undoubtedly culpable, however, with personal debt at very high levels, and many people saddled with assets (i.e houses) that cost far more than the market can sustain, Joe Public doesn't seem to have been very prudent either. It's the GREED, stupid!

Nigel Smith, Munich,

The drop in the price of oil, which is traded in US$, is now being offset by the drop in the value of £Stg against the US$.This means that fuel prices may not drop as the oil price might suggest. It is becoming evident that the Gordon and Alistair comedy show may cost us dear for some time to come.

Chris, London,

Mr Timms should know that whilst there is no target for exchange rates there's a target for inflation and for a country that has a huge trade deficit, when your currency buys less, it costs more to import things and ultimately that cost is going to be passed on to the UK consumer - raising inflation

Joe, London,

In 2006 and 2007 when oil was $60 a barrel, the pump price for petrol was 85p. That's at least 10p a litre the fuel companies are currently ripping us off. Not to mention everything else that rose in price and blamed the high cost of oil.

Julian, shrewsbury, uk

While ever the Government is hell bent on spending cash it simply does not have why would anyone want Sterling?

Gordon & Alistair will bankrupt the country before the financial year is out.

Thomas, Reigate,

Presumably at some point the inflationary effects of a falling currency will outweigh the economic benefits of a cut in interest rates. Weren't we forced to defend the currency with a 5% hike in rates in 92. All this talk about drastic cuts in interest rates is clearly counterproductive.

S Miller, ChCh, NZ

We will now pay for our arrogance. No no the UK doesn't need the Euro. Well my advise is spend everything you have while you can still get something for it. Soon the pounds will be used as wallpaper...

Ivan, Newcastle,

Looking at a preview of what Brown is going to say today you can see he is totally out of touch.

Lets hope the city types give him slow hand clap.

Fat chance - they will be too busy sucking up to him.

Despite what he says will Brown 'spend spend spend' - or is it just smoke and mirrors?

TrevorsDen, Wallingford, OXON

The Fuel protests some 18 months ago should have been a signal to the Government that it was taking too much out in TAX to pay for its supposed War on Terror. Lifting the interest rate to combat excessive tax was the catalyst here and more importantly in the USA. Simple really just Gov was to greedy

Mark Steele, gateshead, uk

When are the people in charge going to admit they have no idea what they are doing?

John F, London,

its a mess - anybody been sacked for it yet ??? - mr brown please do the decent thing

lee, telford, uk

I've always said that if the Pound goes down low enough - near a 1:1 rate to the Euro - the UK may join the Euro. It'll be interesting to see what happens next.

Ursula, Konz-Oberemmel, Germany

British and the American currency, what is it? bits pf paper with the queens head stamped on it. What back it up to maintain it's value, nothing. Gordon Brown sold off their Gold reserve, why. Sold it cheap too, who did he sell it to?. And why did he sell it?. CROOKS IN POWER & HIGH OFFICE.

Daphne Kenward, Cambridge, UK

DickW, Aberdeenshire
France has healthy agriculture?? Why then does it need to be propped up by the largest amount of EU farming Subsidies of any European Nation?
A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.

Matt, aberdeenshire, UK

With income diminishing, I would have thought that the last thing we should be doing is spending more. Perhaps the fall of the pound is the international judgement of us following that course of action.

Tony Pegg, Leicester, England

DickW is right - France has more than tourism and agriculture. It has good roads,excellent railways and most importantly a nuclear power industry producing nearly 80 % of their electricity (and exporting electricity to Britain) They have spent the money that the UK is now going to have to borrow.

Paul, Charlottesville,Virginia,

With the exception of a few bitter right wing nuts, most people know this is a global problem, and trying to blame the PM for it is plain silly. Get on with your life and stop moaning. Everyone in the whole world is affected one way or another.

mac, Manchester, UK

Dear John Britain returned to the Gold Std in 1925 and left again in 1931. The problem was not the std but the rate at which Britain returned, at pre-war dollar parity $4.86. Sterling was too STRONG. The economy suffered as a result long BEFORE the Great Depression. Leaving, of itself, did not help.

Derek, Cape Town, SA

buy sterling and buy the ftse below 3600.The best deals on the planet right now.Its all oversold right now.

Kevin, London, England

The lemmins who are selling their shares will regret it. This is not the end of the World it is an economic adjustment. It's the end for hedge funds who are being forced to sell thus forcing the market down. I am buying in good companies that have been around for decades. Quo Vadis dell boy.

Frederick, London, UK

This is an absolute utter, total disgrace for which heads should fall. What we need is confidence building, not miserable hand wringers like King who have encouraged depression through their negative comments. Let us build Britain up again by being positive and pushing all that is good with the UK

John, Glasgow, UK

The markets have lost confidence in the UK economy and will drive up the UK's cost of borrowing. We started the recession at an already parlous level of public borrowing due to Brown's lack of "prudence" and overt vote-buying. Labour's chickens are coming home to roost.

Stevie, Bagshot,

When is Labour going to have to go to the IMF for a bailout like last time - every time Labour leaves power they leave an almighty mess for the Tories to sort out

William Lack, London, UK

........amid mounting fears of a prolonged UK recession.
The media have been using this expression for weeks. How much more can fears mount ? It would be better if they calmed down for a while and stopped fanning the flames. But of course they can't can they?

Martin, Brentwood, UK

Record borrowing got us into this mess and Brown's answer? Borrow more. No wonder the markets are in free fall. The markets will not steady until a grip is taken on Private and Public borrowing to show that the government is in control.

Paul Johnson, Essex, UK

I know, lets go to war with a large middle eastern country full of black gold and steal it off of them, surely that will get us out of trouble...

Tim, Oxford,

"It's the economy, stupid!"

With heavy emphasis on the last word. Mr Brown must be very proud of his handiwork. 11 years after he took charge of our economy, it is looking increasingly like the aftermath of an American "surgical strike".

Tom Welsh, Basingstoke,

Mr TIMMS, thank you for kindly explaining that interest rates 'go
up and down'!! Useful to know!! However I think that a 23% drop in sterling against the dollar alone since July means we have a very big problem and you should be more aware of it.

Pedro, London, UK

Dudley Holley is wrong about France.. Agriculture and tourism apart France also has an extremely health electronics industry - your broadband connection will be powered by an Alcatel DSLAM - and of course it still builds cars and aircraft.

DickW, Aberdeenshire,

The UK is broke. Looks like UK will be knocking on the door of the IMF along with Iceland. Labour have done it again.

Chris, Chipping Norton,

'Prudence' was in a Beatles song, and like our ex-chancellor is living in the depths of the past.
For the countries sake, he MUST limit borrowing, and RAISE interest rates, not cut them. He must attract currency from abroad, not rebuff it. Customers go to where the best deal is. It is not here.

Neil, Maidstone, uk

1979 ish James Callaghan said "I tell you in all candor we can no longer spend our way out of recession". Mr Brown needs to let sterling slide though as it was perhaps supporting sterling by joining the gold standard that made the 30s depression worse.

John Thorley, Newcastle, England

If, as Broon says, the UK is better placed than other countries to withstand the recession, can he please explain why the pound is falling against the currencies of those other countries. This will make imports of food and fuel dearer and drive up inflation.

KW, Bognor Regis, England

I'm going to bet, you'll still vote for them and i thought all the sheep were here!

Geoffrey, Sydney,

If all of this is prudence, then what on earth is profligacy?

Chris, Cape Town,

The current climb of the USD is due to the settlements of hedge funds which are transacted in that currency. Be patient as some settle and some do not stand a snow flakes chance in hell. It would not be too long now before normal service is resumed and the USD goes into freefall.

N Parag, Melbourne, Australia

The marekt only dumps currency when its loss faith in it and the countries government.We havent got to the level of Zimbabwe yet but the way this government is proposing to del with the recession it will just get worse.
The market is looking for austerity to sort things out not spend spend spend ..

Malcolm Hill, Welwyn Garden City, England

France has its agriculture & tourism. Germany has its huge quality manufacturing base. America has its huge natural resources. Britian has its supermarkets, hairdressers, shops, and fast food industry, and a financial services industry on its knees. Better placed than most to weather the storm?

dudley holley, Thorpe Bay, UK

Let the pound fall until the economy rebounds. It's the easiest way out of this mess. Gordon Brown is doing the right thing to borrow now, because we will be able to repay our debts with relatively devalued money.

Peter, Liverpool, UK

Whatever happened to Prudence, Gordon?

Paul Freeman, London, England

Falling pound not a verdict on economic policy? The Government is having a laugh! It is the profligate borrowing and spending of Imprudence Brown that has got us into this sorry mess!

Richard Marriott, Kidderminster, England

As treasurer, making the Bank of England independent was hailed as Mr. Brown's finest move. Yet as prime minister he pressures it to cut interest rates, even though each month Mr King has to write him a letter explaining why we are well above inflation targets. Doesn't that seem a tad hypocritical?

Ashley Baker, London,

Compare the level of the Aussie dollar now $2.5 to the pound almost 2 in July

James Hendry , Adelaide , Australia

Perhaps, as Sterling edges towards parity with the Euro, you could join the Eurozone? I frequently travel between the Netherlands and Britiain and this exchange rate business is costing me fortunes.

Promise me you'll look into it please.

Daquan Quartermaine, Middelburg, Netherlands

Let's face it no one has the faintest idea what is going to happen over the next 1-5 years with any certainty. We do know that the government plan to centrally do what partially got us into this mess and that is borrow what we don't have and possibly never be able to repay it.

Mark, Crowborough, UK

That'll be the Gordon Brown effect!

Ian, Tokyo, Japan

Gordon Brown and his cunning plan to throw away the last of our cash reserves then borrow more than we can afford to repay only to throw that way aswell is perhaps not the brightest of ideas is it?
Still, we have our gold reserves to fall back on now eh?

Stephanie King, larnaca, Cyprus