Leveson needed on financial crash
Letter to The Times
31 May 2012
Dear Sirs
Whatever its conclusions, the Leveson Inquiry has already been of immense benefit to our democracy. Its format and process – requiring disclosure of hitherto private records, compelling attendance of witnesses at the highest levels, and subjecting them to forensic examination – have shone a light on critical areas of public life formerly kept in the shadows. It has forced not just politicians, but leaders of public institutions, and key figures in the private sector, to account publicly for their actions in a way they are normally able to avoid.
This kind of Inquiry cannot be established very often. But if phone hacking was the scandal which led to Leveson, the last few years have witnessed an even more serious issue which surely demands a judicial investigation of the same kind. This is the financial crash of 2007-8 and its aftermath. Almost half a decade on from the collapse of Northern Rock, Lehmann Brothers and the Royal Bank of Scotland, the impact of the crash on our economy, society and politics continue to be far-reaching. Yet the fundamental questions about why it occurred, who was responsible, whether the actions taken in response have been appropriate, and how a repetition can be prevented in the future, have not been properly and fully examined in public. Critically, most of the key actors, notably in the private financial institutions and public regulators, have not been required to account properly for their roles and behaviour.
A judicial inquiry into the financial crash on the lines of Leveson would do much to tell us all about how our financial system really works, and would help cut through the political point-scoring about both responsibility and response. Those involved should welcome the chance to explain themselves. It would do our political process the power of good.
Yours faithfully,
Michael Jacobs
Tony Wright
The authors are Co-Editors of the Political Quarterly.
31 May 2012
Dear Sirs
Whatever its conclusions, the Leveson Inquiry has already been of immense benefit to our democracy. Its format and process – requiring disclosure of hitherto private records, compelling attendance of witnesses at the highest levels, and subjecting them to forensic examination – have shone a light on critical areas of public life formerly kept in the shadows. It has forced not just politicians, but leaders of public institutions, and key figures in the private sector, to account publicly for their actions in a way they are normally able to avoid.
This kind of Inquiry cannot be established very often. But if phone hacking was the scandal which led to Leveson, the last few years have witnessed an even more serious issue which surely demands a judicial investigation of the same kind. This is the financial crash of 2007-8 and its aftermath. Almost half a decade on from the collapse of Northern Rock, Lehmann Brothers and the Royal Bank of Scotland, the impact of the crash on our economy, society and politics continue to be far-reaching. Yet the fundamental questions about why it occurred, who was responsible, whether the actions taken in response have been appropriate, and how a repetition can be prevented in the future, have not been properly and fully examined in public. Critically, most of the key actors, notably in the private financial institutions and public regulators, have not been required to account properly for their roles and behaviour.
A judicial inquiry into the financial crash on the lines of Leveson would do much to tell us all about how our financial system really works, and would help cut through the political point-scoring about both responsibility and response. Those involved should welcome the chance to explain themselves. It would do our political process the power of good.
Yours faithfully,
Michael Jacobs
Tony Wright
The authors are Co-Editors of the Political Quarterly.
