article_snippet.sent: ’ John Cridland, director-general of the CBI, warned last week that Labour’s plans to intervene in markets, such as the energy market, and ’ John Cridland, director-general of the CBI
article_snippet.sent: The Right-leaning Centre for Policy Studies
article_snippet.sent: In the latest Tory attempt to revive the free market spirit of the 1980s, millions of small investors willing to spend £250 or more would be given priority access to shares still owned from the 2008 bank bailout.
article_snippet.sent: If the party wins the election, the sale would begin with a publicity drive similar to the
article_snippet.sent: ‘Tell Sid’ adverts that pushed the 1986 privatisation of British Gas.
article_snippet.sent: To counter any claims of a ‘get rich quick’ sell-off, buyers who keep the shares for a year would be rewarded with a loyalty bonus of one extra free share for every ten they hold.
article_snippet.sent: the sale would also recoup billions for the Exchequer to pay off some of the country’s vast national debts.
article_snippet.sent: Yesterday the Prime Minister told the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show this would be the first time there had been such an offer for individual investors.
article_snippet.sent: ‘The taxpayer put billions into these banks and I want to get the money back,’ the Prime Minister said.
article_snippet.sent: At the same time I think having people being able to own shares in a healthy, successful British bank is the sort of country we should be building.
article_snippet.sent: Labour said the Tories had announced the sell-off policy seven times
article_snippet.sent: including before the last election.
article_snippet.sent: Lib Dem Danny Alexander said the idea had been rejected over the past five years ‘because the idea’s not been clear that we’d be able to get the money back for the taxpayer’.
article_snippet.sent: Lloyds was bailed out with £20billion of taxpayers’ money in 2008, leaving Lloyds 43 per cent state owned.
article_snippet.sent: The Government still owns £12.5billion of shares, which were worth 78.7p each on Friday – compared to the 73.6p paid by Gordon Brown.