REFORM OF THE BANKING SYSTEM

That this House notes that the bank bonus season is beginning; is outraged that whilst people suffer cuts to their services and brace themselves for the forthcoming rise in VAT, the banks are back to business as usual; condemns the proposed payout of nearly 7 billion in City bonuses this year and further notes that 7 billion is more than the first wave of public spending cuts being made in the wake of the banking crisis-driven recession; welcomes the increasing number of grassroots public campaigns springing up in 15 nations as part of the fast-growing counterweight to the power of the banks, including the New Economics Foundation's Take Back Our Banks campaign; and calls for radical change in the banking sector, including the separation of retail banking and speculative activities, the introduction of country-by-country reporting to ensure banks disclose information for every location in which they trade, the introduction of a Robin Hood tax, a more ambitious bank levy and permanent new controls on bankers' bonuses.