The new management team at Northern Rock is looking into whether they can take legal action against the previous board that led the bank into such difficulties last year.
At the moment the matter is in the hands of lawyers acting on behalf of Northern Rock who are in the process of looking into the situation to determine what can be done. Only after their analysis is complete will there be any decision made on pursuing the matter through the courts.
Elsewhere at Northern Rock the bank is aiming to increase the debt collection part of its business by well over 100 percent as they plan for the financial difficulties that may face their customers in the future. There are currently around 170 people in this particular department though that number will be closer to 450 after the extra staff have been brought on board.
,p>The Alliance and Leicester current account offer that has a credit interest rate of 8.5 percent gross is being extended until the end of September according to a recent announcement.
The move has been made to encourage more consumers to save regularly, the high interest rate being a real eye catcher designed to highlight the benefits of saving. The accounts that are included in this Alliance and Leicester promotion are the Premier 50 and Premier Direct current accounts.
Younger savers also have an extension on their own promotion. The Alliance and Leicester Premier 21 account is a current account specifically for those aged between 16 and 21 which is offering a 10 percent interest rate during the promotional period.
The Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, apparently told the people of the UK that Northern Rock could be sold for a profit in the future while his own advisors had said otherwise.
Gordon Brown had stated in a press conference in February that Northern Rock could be sold for a profit when the financial markets had recovered, though the advisors brought in to look at the options for Northern Rock had said a GBP450 million loss was the best possible outcome, with the most likely result being a loss of GBP1.28 billion. This figure was based on stable house prices, so in the current climate the loss is expected to be even greater.
The Treasury has stated that its purpose in buying out Northern Rock was to stabilise the bank and also the rest of the financial sector, not to make a profit. However Mr Brown should not have misled the public by saying a sale would generate a profit. Oh to have an honest politician, we can but dream.
