PM says rescue plan will provide ’sounder footing’ for financial system

Speaking following the announcement of the financial market rescue plan that has been proposed recently by the government in the UK, the Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, has said that the aim of the plan is to try and get the UK’s financial system back onto a sounder footing following the turmoil that has been experienced since the onset of the global credit crunch last year.

Following the recent announcement, which also included an announcement that the base rate was being cut by 0.5%, one industry official said: “What Gordon Brown and central banks have done today should stave off economic Armageddon – but it’s probably too late to save us from months, or even years, of sluggish growth.”

However, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Alistair Darling, said that he hoped the rescue plan would kick start the financial markets. He said: “This is beginning a process of un-bunging a big problem where banks won’t lend to each other for long periods.”

The move has been welcomed by banks, and an official from HBOS said: “The government’s announcement represents a very real and serious intention on the part of the authorities, following consultation with the banking industry, to bring stability and certainty to the UK banking system.”