NatWest, in their ultimate wisdom, now take the interest on overdrafts two week earlier each month than they have done for the last ten years. Apparently all customers received a booklet in January explaining this. Well I didn’t. I have also been informed that they put this all over their statements, but I bank on-line with paper-less statements (on their recommendation). Therefore NatWest took money from my account without my knowledge and have sent me over my overdraft limit. This will cost me £28 in charges. This is nothing short of theft.

When I phoned to complain I was informed by a sanctimonious NatWest robot that this was done to help all customers. Hmm! Yes please, NatWest, take money from my account earlier I insist! What a load of bankers! They took this decision on a purely commercial, money grabbing basis and bollocks to their customers.

Ministers, in their ultimate wisdom, believe the only way to get the credit system moving again is to give billions of pounds to the banking sector and then threaten to take it back from them, bit by bit, in multi-million pound fines.

Chancellor Alistair Darling said: “We will use the money raised from the fines to recapitalise those banks that have been forced to pay very heavy fines. The banks must then use that money for lending and if they don’t they will be fined. We will then use the money raised from those fines to recapitalise the banks that have been fined and if they don’t lend that money they will be fined. Again.” Glad that cleared things up!

Mr Darling went on to say that those fines would then be used to recapitalise the banks that had been fined, before he was interrupted by a senior Treasury official. The chancellor was then wheeled into the corner of the room where a heavy woollen blanket was draped over his head.

Now, by all means please do stop me if I’m being a total and utter idiot, but if we control the banks and we know what the banks are supposed to do, why can’t we just tell them to do it?