Good on the PM for having the political courage to put the brakes on this debacle.

Confidence will be more effectively restored by a very public display of the sacking of all the incompetents who allowed this debacle. The Bank of England and the FSA must be the laughing stock of the world's financial community.

I trust Mr Brown will put the 'Great' back into Great Britain by insisting on full accountability - and no knighthoods or other trappings for those found so badly wanting

Stuart, Taunton,

The governent and BOE sat back too long and let panic set in instead of going in quickly early last week when it was clear there was a problem, which would have stopped this panic.
But having sat back when Equitable had it's problems (after MP's had first protected their own interests) and let the market resolve the Barings Bank problem they hoped the same could happen again - it did not and shows the lack of commercial awareness in Labour, which under Gordon Brown's stewardish did well despite his stupidity in sell the Gold reserve cheaply and back door taxation, to support government borrowing!!
The City financial institutions also has a lot to blame for this, as they try to profit from the plight of others, which causes turmoil in the market, but keeps their injustified bonus' up - basically avarice of the managers of fiscal institutions, has added to this problem, together with house prices being pushed up way above the average earners prudent borrowing level.

doug smith, sidmouth, devon

Guess how much money I've just made :)

Farrukh, Woking, UK

Up only 11% - hardy what you call a 'rallying' or 'rebound'

Alex, London, London,

It's just like the petrol crisis of 2000. People blindly panicking and bringing the whole country down with them. Idiots. I wonder how many pensioners will be mugged this week while carrying their entire life savings with them? The comment from Pete Balchin here is typical. No facts, no analysis, just the smug kneejerk cynicism of the pub bore.

tom may, bristol, uk

Doesn't the banking industry have any form of insurance to safeguard the money lent to it by its investors and ensure maintenance of public confidence? I presume not given the need for government intervention and, in which case, then would it not be prudent to give some consideration to the development of a suitable enabling mechanism?
I would have thought that the need for adequate insurance is especially relevant at a time when the practices and instruments involved in money management are apparently becoming increasingly complex and risky. One might envisage a possible insurance scheme where the premium paid by a banking institution might reflect in some way its capacity, conduct and level of exposure?

Gerry Healy, Staines, UK

And their statutory objective is to prevent this kind of thing from happening, great job to all at the FSA. What are you going to do for your next trick ?

O, LONDON,

It is quite wrong that taxpayer's money is being used to underwrite the failure at Northern Rock - a private company. Above all, it creates a precedent for other very large private financial institutions. It seems that whatever happens, as long as the 'cock-up' is on a grand scale, the banks will always be bailed-out. How many other private companies enjoy the same security and protection? None. It's almost a reward for failure and a green light for reckless risk-taking and complacency. It should be understood by everyone that there are no totally risk-free investments.

Robert Nield, Hartford, Cheshire

Does the Chancellors statement with regards Northern Rock savings have the same weight as previous statements from the Government regarding Company pension schemes. It is hardly surprising that people are continuing to withdraw from Northern Rock. Hiding it under the matress is probably safer than anything backed by a Government 'guarantee'.

Ian, Ipswich,

According to Bloomberg:

"...Regulatory officials insisted today that the Newcastle, England-based bank is "solvent," after Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling yesterday pledged to reassure savers that it will guarantee all deposits held there..."

This gives me great confidence....

Pete Balchin, Solicitor , Bristol, UK