I am not sure that Gordon Brown has failed. The last run on bank shares here in the UK was directly caused by the incredible stupidity of the FInancial Services Authority, which removed its ban on short selling of shares - and only gave the Chancellor (Darling) one hour's notice. Otherwise, I think Brown and Darling have done everything right, and with Obama starting a New Deal type programme in the USA, I think we maybe on our way.

A friend of mine (he does clever things with computer programs that deal with money) is saying that the number of ads for his type of jobs has probably doubled in the last month, and another who is trying to finance an age-related leisure concept is saying that many more doors are opening.

The important thing to remember, as I think I was saying when the UK first put bank rate decisions into an independent Bank of England is that governments must control their bans, not vice versa. Look at Poland. Best economy in Europe right now precisely because the banks were not allowed to play Arthur Daley sleight-of-hand shell games with derivatives and were compelled to keep to proper on-book transactions and capital ratios.

When the IMF loans start rolling (to Iceland, and they may well to other places - the Repulic of Ireland, who also went heavily down the "enterprise culture" road, springs to mind) the FIRST thing the IMF should be insisting on is proper bank regulation, not the "screw-the-workers" capitalism they usually require.

Governments should also take power to delay larger withdrawals from banks in a crisis. Most (that's "most" not "all") bank failures are not about capital deficiency, unless they have really lost it big time, but about cash flow, and if withdrawals can be delayed while assets are realised in an orderly fashion the bank may survive and the majority of deposits saved without having to rely on government guarantees. It is the administration culture - or, as I understand it, to US readers, Chapter 11 not Chapter 7 - but without the adverse effect on so many creditors.