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December 2, 2009
Church leaders: RBS should be Royal Bank of Sustainability
by Benjamin Graham
Church leaders have joined other notable figures in signing a letter calling for the publicly-owned Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) to be turned into the Royal Bank of Sustainability.
Rev Ian Galloway, Church of Scotland convenor, and Miles Litvinoff, of the Ecumenical Council for Corporate Responsibility, joined academics, writers, trade union leaders, anti-poverty campaigners, and MPs in signing a letter to the government.
The 40 signatories accused Westminster of “writing a blank cheque with taxpayers’ money” to fund “destructive” projects around the world that contribute to human rights abuses and climate change.
“By disregarding the harmful consequences of some recapitalised bank investments, the Treasury risks being charged with gross negligence in its duty to protect the interests of taxpayers,” the letter reads.
No representatives from the Church of England, which has an £8.5 million investment in RBS, signed the letter.
The letter was delivered to the government to coincide with the publication of a report – commissioned by Friends of the Earth (FoE) Scotland, the World Development Movement (WDM), People & Planet and PLATFORM – which cites examples from around the world where RBS investments are destroying the environment.
“This catalogue of harmful bank investments paid for by the UK taxpayer puts the government to shame,” said Julian Oram, head of policy at WDM.
“Public money pumped into RBS and other bailed-out banks over the last year is paying for some of the most damaging mining and fossil fuel projects around the world.
“These projects will have untold consequences for some of the world’s poorest people, while failing to deliver any long-term benefit to the British taxpayer.”
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