Alistair Darling news stories on Newser

G-20 Pledges to Keep Stimulus Flowing

Sat, 05 Sep 2009 12:50:47 CDT

Top finance officials from rich and developing countries today pledged to maintain stimulus measures to boost the global economy, warning that the fledging recovery that provided the backdrop to their meeting is by no means assured. Group of 20 finance ministers also promised a crackdown on bankers' pay—but stopped...

Brown Likely to Hang On to Power

Jason Farago — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 08:18:00 CDT

Gordon Brown looked set to hang on to power this morning, despite the shock resignation of yet another minister who called on him to step down. James Purnell, a young Blairite, quit the Cabinet seconds after polls closed in last night's election, forcing Brown to bring forward a planned government...

UK Expenses Scandal Hits Alistair Darling

Jason Farago — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 06:52:50 CDT

Britain's ongoing political expenses scandal reached all the way to the second-highest post in government today, after the Telegraph broke news that Chancellor Alistair Darling reportedly expensed the service charge on a South London apartment he was renting out while also claiming allowances on his Downing Street house. Though he...

UK Drops Rates to 0.5%, Begins 'Printing Money'

Jason Farago — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 06:18:00 CST

The Bank of England cut interest rates today by 50 basis points to an all-time low of 0.5% and began a far more drastic process: quantitative easing, or "printing money." The Times of London reports that the Bank received permission from the government this morning to spend $106 billion...

UK Forking Over $60M to Bail Out Charities

Jason Farago — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 05:21:13 CST

The British government will bail out the nation's charities with a $60 million lifeline, as experts warned that one in three nonprofits may have to lay off staff, reports the Guardian . While the charities welcomed the bailout, it is far less than the $150 million they requested to maintain vital...

Desperate Times: UK Mulls 3-Day Week

Matt Cantor — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 10:39:19 CST

Now officially in recession amid the global downturn, the specter of a three-day work week has emerged in Britain, the Independent reports. Though officials say it’s "not imminent," the government has discussed paying firms to cut hours with public cash going toward compensating employees for the lost time. But such...

UK Slashes Interest Rates to All-Time Low of 1.5%

Jason Farago — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 07:10:00 CST

The venerable Bank of England cut interest rates today by 50 basis points, trimming them to 1.5%—their lowest since the bank's founding in the 17th century. Investors had expected the move, although business organizations had pressed for a 100-point cut. Yesterday, Britain's finance minister admitted that the recession...

Feds Consider Insuring All Bank Deposits

Clay Dillow — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 16:39:01 CDT

Under the shadow of the deteriorating global economy, the US is considering two more steps to assuage markets, the Wall Street Journal reports: guaranteeing billions in bank debt and insuring all US bank deposits. Either move is an aggressive step, and in tandem they would mark Wasington's largest intervention yet...

UK Buys Up Bank Shares in Radical Bailout

Rob Quinn — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 04:29:50 CDT

The British government will become part owner of the nation's biggest banks with a mammoth $88-billion rescue package for the troubled institutions, the Wall Street Journal reports. Under the plan, swiftly assembled after UK bank stocks plummeted in trading yesterday, the government will purchase non-voting shares in eight of the...