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Ealing Southall MP Virendra Sharma contemplates tough times

12:37pm Tuesday 11th November 2008


Since I last wrote this column the financial crisis has certainly got worse, with HBOS taken over by LloydsTSB and Bradford & Bingley nationalised and large fluctuations on the world’s stock markets almost a daily occurrence.

The US bailout of financial institutions, crippled by the toxic sub-prime mortgage debt problems has also again underlined the US origins of this now worldwide financial crisis. The announcement this week of a Government rescue package for the British banking system has underlined the unprecedented nature of this crisis and illustrates the desperately serious times we are going through.

As the Prime Minister said at the Labour Party Conference, this is “no time for a novice” to be leading the country. I am confident that the Prime Minister and the new team around him following the cabinet reshuffle are best placed to deal with this crisis and hardworking families can be assured that the Labour Government is on their side and will do everything to protect their interests and provide help to them through the economic difficulties they face.

Undoubtedly, this international financial crisis is now feeding through to the real economy and difficult times lie ahead for everyone but the hope is that the decisive action taken by the Government in shoring up the financial system will ensure the impacts in the real economy are not as bad as they otherwise would be.

With all this financial bad news I am particularly looking forward to celebrating Diwali this year on Tuesday, October 28. Diwali, the Hindu “festival of lights”, is also the time when throughout the world Hindus worship Laxmi, the Goddess of prosperity and wealth. It is believed that Goddess Laxmi visits everyone during Diwali and brings peace and prosperity to all.

This year, of all years the positive Diwali message of financial prosperity is certainly one that is needed, and I send my Diwali greetings to all Ealing Times readers.


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George Knox, says...
10:56pm Tue 11 Nov 08

So - Mr Cameron is a novice. So - Mr Sharma is an idle thinking sniper. The Prime Minister as a novice newly in government wrecked our Pensions industry and pensioners standards of living. Our Prime Minister as a novice borrowed like crazy through ‘off balance sheet budgets’ despite claims to Prudence. As a novice he allowed the Bank of England to drop interest rates without controlling bank lending, thereby allowing a massive rise in property prices. Now nobody can afford to buy, and with feeble immigration controls until recently no one can find affordable housing. Sleeping on the floor is more commonplace. The IMF says this country is now worse placed financially out of all European countries, in other words we are broke. Just like old times when Harold Wilson was PM. So much for Prudence whose virtue has been so violated. And unlike Thatcher he has no assets to sell. Brown gets plaudits for leading the world in capitalising the banking system. He had no choice, as the serious Media tell us that at least one bank was finding it difficult to borrow even overnight money on the day before he made the capitalisation announcement. So with no choice except to let one of our largest banks go bust and so creating even greater havoc to the economy, his hand was forced, but he sold the decision to us as sound financial management. Was that really so clever of him or was it another violation of public confidence? Like America this country wants change just as we did when Tony Blair – also then a novice - won in 1997. And, locally, change is badly needed so that we have what is called a hard working constituency MP just as we do in the two other Ealing constituencies.

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