Chancellor Alistair Darling resolutely upbeat this morning on Today despite the crisis over at Northern Rock.Let's hope he is right. Would the Government, as Will Hutton suggested, take the logical step of nationalising it in a worst-case scenario? One thing's for sure. The mood music in the media about snap general elections has already changed. It's suggested by the Guardian that pictures of anxious savers queuing to get their money out wouldn't exactly be helpful to our victory prospects. Indeed. And interesting, if a tad scary, to note just how quickly the apparent invincibility of the capitalist world can start to crack.
In 1929, the Wall Street Crash had terrible repercussions for the nation, despite the fact that less than one per cent of the American people actually possessed stocks and shares. The fall in share prices over just a few weeks made it difficult for entrepreneurs to raise the money needed to run their companies. Within a short time, 100,000 American companies were forced to close and many workers became unemployed. It was the start of the Great Depression. We're a long way from that. But it's a salutary lesson for companies like Northern Rock, where shares have fallen a horrific 50 per cent in just a few days
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