So the great white explorer Mr Richard Branson has been ousted or outbid or just plain told no, by the British Government.

Now I dont see the sense in the taxpayer, that is you and me folks, owning a bank that we dont actually own? Our money will run it and pay the wages of its workers and even go towards the lending of money from within its coffers that comes from, oh yes, the British taxpayer!

Does it make sense that we would take a failing bank that runs on high risk lending and try (I use the word optimistacally) to turn it around? Well apparently it does, though I have looked hard for it I cannot seem to find it. As much as I do not like our Mr Branson at least he would have used half his own money and borrowed the rest, which of course would have again come from us the taxpayer, but with the difference of he (or rather the Bank) would have had to pay it back.

So now we prepare for another hike in interest rates, taxes, and anything else they can think of to raise to accrue the money for this new 'Endeavour' .

All the rest of the high street banks and building societies have now decided to make life even harder for the poor beleagured first time buyer, they will no longer offer 125% mortgages and are even stopping the 100% ones, now you will have to find a hefty deposit before you can get your foot on the first rung of the property ladder, this is the result of the scare of The Northern Rock fiasco.

What a lot of people dont know is that Northern Rock have been making life that little bit more hellish for the people that it lent money to, thanks to a little known Government ruling Banks and Building societies can now take that unsecured loan/Credit Card/Debt to court and secure it on your property through a piece of paper called a charging Order, they can then go back to court for a force of Sale, most of the Banks have not carried out force of sales, until Northern Rock started floundering, within weeks it was taking people to court and making them sell their homes even though the debt itself may have been no more than six or seven thousand pounds!

Be careful when looking at that unsecured loan that looks really tempting, it may just cost you more than you realise!