Ministers and the Opposition hardened their line against bank bonuses today amid suggestions that Lloyds intended to go ahead with payouts worth £120m this year.

Tony McNulty, Employment Minister, said that any bank employee who had responsibility for the disastrous business model adopted by the banks should "not get a penny". Junior staff should be able to get between £1,000 and £2,000, he said, but anyone with a significant involvement in the business model should be paid nothing extra at all.

Meanwhile Tory leader David Cameron also called for a ceiling of £2,000 on all bonuses in banks that have taken a stake from the taxpayer, to prevent big payouts to executives.

“People who work hard and have paid their taxes are seeing billions of pounds of taxes go into these banks and yet large bonuses are still being paid. That’s just wrong,” said Mr Cameron.

“I wouldn’t deny the teller in a bank the £1,000 or £2,000 bonus if they have a modest salary... What I am talking about is bonuses to the board, to senior executives, to big traders, to big money earners. That’s completely wrong.”

Mr Cameron said he raised the issue with Gordon Brown at the time of the banking bail-out in October, and accused the Prime Minister of being “asleep on the job”.

Mr Brown's announcement of a year-long review of the system meant bonuses would probably be paid out not only for 2008 but for 2009 as well, said the Tory leader.

Lloyds Banking Group, which is 43 per cent state-owned, is believed to be planning to pay out £120 million in bonuses for 2008, a year in which its HBOS subsidiary made estimated losses of £10 billion.

Last week it emerged that RBS, which received £20 billion in state support, was planning to pay bonuses totalling £1 billion.

Lloyds said today that no decisions had been taken on this year’s bonuses, and the position was not expected to be finalised for some time. The group’s five executive directors have all voluntarily agreed to forego any bonus that they may be awarded for 2008.

Lloyds spokesman Mr O’Riordain said: “We will consult with UK Financial Investments when we have a proposal to make to them.”

UK Financial Investments, the arm’s-length body set up to oversee the Government’s stakeholdings in banks, declined to comment on whether it was in talks with Lloyds about bonuses.

Times Recommends

• Minister in talks with Saudis to protect creditors
• Premier Inn hits back in £29-a-room row
• Bankers hit back at 'populist' bonus supertax