I can’t imagine that RBS boss Stephen Hester will be winning any popularity points among the recently redundant, with the news of his £9.6m pay deal.
This is, however, an indictment against the government’s and FSA’s ability to control these huge payouts. It gives RBS a bad name, it gives Hester a bad name, but, perhaps most importantly, it gives bonuses a bad name.

While  I can’t really comment on the first two, for the 14.27 million of Brits on variable pay, I think that the “bonus culture” deserves some defense. I am sure they wouldn’t  turn their noses up at £9.6m, in actual fact it usually comes in much smaller forms as a reward for good performance. A lot of companies are also trying to motivate staff by non-monetary means: extra holidays, booze Fridays, shopping vouchers etc.

In a time when we are all feeling the squeeze, a little “bonus” goes a long way – lets not all pay for Hester’s payout.