Blame for this crash in progress rests with the former Chancellor's restructuring of supervisory responsibility.

No one took responsibility or curtailed precarious and imprudent practices by Banks. The Government regulates in the public interest. Banks are the stability of the Financial System. Investors do and have a right to rely on the efficacy of that function.

This was his job. Gordon and his appointees failed us, as we now see in the failure of the credit market and the crash of shares.

For his own political ascent Gordon Brown would do nothing to assure there was a "stop" as well as a "go", or perhaps eyes were shut to the "off balance sheet liabilities" of Banks that reguators always come back on the balance sheet.

How will many more Rock's be paid for?
How will the housing market not go into freefall with liquidity seizing?
Gordon, will Britain be going to the IMF again in a year?

No near term turnaround is possible with these fundamentals.

Shane, London, UK

It doesnt take a geuius to work out that if you loan money at a ridiculously low rate that when the rate goes to a more sensible level you can expect trouble. Britain never got out of the last recession, Browns amazing chancellorship was created by handing out unsustainably low credit. We seem to have forgoten the millions of failed pensions and endowments caused again by overly low interest rates. Designer economics are unsafe.

kenny, hove,

I hope the directors of these banks award themselves billions of pounds of bonuses and 100 Million pound pensions !!

Robert Dein, Newcastle, UK

There is one big difference - in the 20s "the consumer", cities, states and nations were not in debts as they are today. And if there were, thoses interest-payments stayed inside the country.

Today USA is obliged to "transfer" more than 10 billion $ EACH MONTH in new T-bonds - to China, GCC and others - as interests alone. Paying interests on old debts with new debts.

There is no other exit than inflation...

Peter Vernunft, Berlin, Germany

The problem is US banks sold the tail end of these sub prime loans around the world, and foreign bankers bought US grade property loans on trust. Bad for the rest of the world but not good for US institutions which have now used up all the world's trust unloading rubbish on bankers who should have known better. We need government oversight on both sides of the Atlantic to restore trust in the monetary system.

Michael, Key West, Fl, USA

"China is awash with cash profits from selling the West cheap goods. With about a trillion dollars in the bank. Has anyone thought of approaching China, for say ... an overdraft?

Abid, Shipley, UK"

The trillion dollars IS the overdraft.

Andy, London, UK

Lets just hope the Directors, CEO's etc continue to award themselves bonuses and above inflation pay increases for the sensible lending strategies they've implemented over the last few years!

Peter Annand, Wellington, New Zealand

China is awash with cash profits from selling the West cheap goods. With about a trillion dollars in the bank. Has anyone thought of approaching China, for say ... an overdraft?

Abid, Shipley, UK

One thing we can be certain of is that the RBS exposure in the USA will be larger than Barclays.

Alistair, Edinburgh,

Since I can remember I have heard banks declaring billions in profits very quarter ; record numbers here record rips offs there.
What happened to these vast accumulated profits? Was it all distributed to shareholders? Was none of it put by for a rainy day? Don't you get rain in E.C.4. or E.1. or wherever it is these days?

Ripsnorter, Malaga, Spain

"Major proportion"?

US GDP is over $10,000billion. Europe must be similar. That implies net asset value of over $400,000billion at a p/e of 20.

This has been looking like the 1920s for twenty years at least. Any crash need be no worse than 1987, but dodgy economic policies should cease.

Michael Moore, Stockport,

When are banks going to realise that announcing "all's well" is simply not good enough. Northern Rock did this and now appears to be more or less bankrupt. The only solution is to own up as Barclays has now done. Obscurity creates uncertainty and uncertainty is the root of the problem

John Wilkie, Birmingham, UK

Every day now we seem to be confronted with another bank that has eleventy billion pounds of sub-prime debt as the world goes into credit meltdown.

Who knew that such a major proporion of the world's economy was invested in mortgages on homes in dodgier neighbourhoods in the US?

We aren't overdoing this a little bit are we?

Michael Hills, Singapore, singapore

Yep nothing new. The problem will get a lot worse before it gets better. Its either a 70s or a 1929 problem, only time will tell which one.

Stephen Fraser, London, UK