On Air: Are the bailouts working?

The past year has seen the global economy on a life support machine, otherwise known as the bailout. Just as the scars seemed to be healing, Iceland’s decision to hold off repaying billions of dollars owed to the British government has reopened last year’s wounds.

If they don’t pay it back, it may well become yet another bailout – even if that wasn’t the intention.

Should Britain cut the noise and accept that whilst this might be the bailout they never wanted, it succeeded in calming things down?

Likewise, with the dust settling and things not looking as bleak as we might have predicted- should we accept that the bailouts did work?

If a bank goes bust is it obliged to pay everyone off?

The Dutch want answers and the Brits – well they just want their money back. But it looks like they’re both just going to have to wait if Iceland has anything to do with it.

The President of Iceland has refused to sign a bill to repay  more than $5 billion dollars worth of lost bank deposits to Britain and the Netherlands until the Icelandic people vote on it in a referendum.

Should a struggling economy be made to pay back what it’s borrowed? Or is a deal a deal?