Surveillance...

Paul Boateng, former chief secretary to the Treasury, enjoying the free Wifi at the Baker Street branch of Apostrophe, the fancy coffee shop chain.

Boateng, who was sitting alone, hogged a table for four in the busy outlet, while surfing the web with abandon long after he'd finished his drink.

A principled stance?

As the Government looks to claim back Sir Fred Goodwin's £650,000-a-year pension, will the principle of no retirement rewards for failures of the credit crisis extend to the top brass at the Treasury, the Bank of England, the Financial Services Authority and the Cabinet?
And if so, which selfless soul will make the first sacrifice?

A unique opportunity (again)

Another day, another high-profile vacancy in public sector banking. This time, the Government is seeking a successor to Paul Spencer as chairman of National Savings & Investments, the state-owned bank that's an executive agency of HM Treasury.
"NS&I occupies a unique position in British public life," the job ad entices - which is one way of looking at it. Sadly, banks controlled from 1 Horse Guards Road are now decidedly less unique than they once were.