The government has clearly heard of the self-bastingTurkey. They have tried to imitate it with the self-invalidating policy.
Dr Cable unveiled his prescription for the wickedness of fat cat pay in general and bankers’ bonuses in particular: SHAREHOLDER POWER. Oh, yes. Get the owners of the business to lay down the law to the pushy, top employees with their snouts in the trough.
With RBS the policy has fallen at the first hurdle. The government underestimated public (or more accurately media) militancy about the whole issue. The hapless Mr Hester has found he has (unconvincingly) to declare he doesn’t want his £1million bonus.
In the short term, this gets the government off the hook. When Mr Milliband raises the subject at Wednesday’s PMQs he will be swatted aside with one of the Prime Minister’s cruel, Etonian jibes.
In the long term, it leaves the government looking like a load of turkeys. If asked on Newsnight what he thinks about a big, bonus for Bob Diamond what will Dr Cable say? “I trust the shareholders of Barclays to stop anything that is not merited…” With answers like that there will be a retirement opportunity open for him on the stand-up comedy circuit.
That the government has heard of the self-bastingTurkeyis not a surprise, the mystery is why they have turned themselves into one.