Fred the Shred, Grabber Gordon and the Rule of Law.

I hear that Gordon is aiming to sue Fred Goodwin, ex of RBS and receiver of a mighty £650k/year pension*. I suspect it may be to act as a diversion over the Right Royal pasting Gordon has been getting from Mervyn King of the BoE at the Treasury Select Committee hearings. This, coming hot on the heels of a similar slippery-slopey-shoulderation from the FSA's greasy emanation Lord "Stomach" Turner.

As far as I can tell, to force this issue is to break Rule of Law - contracts. 

Gordon &Co are to blame for a lack of due dilligence...which about sums up the entire "toxic debt" debacle. THEY should pay, NOT the taxpayer.

One angle I would suggest is to see if the Remuneration and Compensation Committee acted improperly, THEN the contract could be deemed a fraud, THEN it could be torn up. Otherwise it will be sheer Robber Baronacy.

Apart from that, it will be interesting to see who comes out in favour of upholding contracts and who is in favour of the State in a fit of shame/envy/hubris tramping on the Rule of Law, and thu unlibertarian.

This event will sure flush out the fake Liberals and Libertarians for sure, who will be very happy to trample on the Rule of Law in a fit of pique.

William Roper: So, now you give the Devil the benefit of law! 
Sir Thomas More: Yes! What would you do? Cut a great road through the law to get after the Devil? 
William Roper: Yes, I'd cut down every law in England to do that! 
Sir Thomas More: Oh? And when the last law was down, and the Devil turned 'round on you, where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? This country is planted thick with laws, from coast to coast, Man's laws, not God's! And if you cut them down, and you're just the man to do it, do you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I'd give the Devil benefit of law, for my own safety's sake! 

We have enough laws laid flat in the pursuit of terrorists, money laundering and the convenience of bureaucrats in Westminster, Town Halls and Brussels.


Maybe this will give some reminder as to the above passage. Some excellent force!

UPDATE: Seems Prodicus also quotes the same passage, but I had the beat.

* though the way things are going £650k might only buy him a new shell-suit.