IceSave was a private company owned by private individuals. The Icelandic nation had nothing whatsoever to do with this company.

Why should we, the Icelandic people, be forced into debt slavery from which we couldn't emerge for generations, to pay the debts of private companies?

By Kristleifur Þorsteinsson | January 5, 2010 1:45 PM

Maybe British and Dutch government should have worked out an agreement with the Icelandic government before making the single handed decision to pay out the Icesave accounts to the full?

By Steinar | January 5, 2010 1:48 PM

The whole deal with government guarantees is an excellent example of socialism - everyone pays for someone’s mistakes. My tax money went as compensation to some greedy folks who tried to make an easy buck.

By Peter | January 5, 2010 2:32 PM

Dutch ask for explanation of Icesave move....

...and as usual the British Government just sit there, doing nothing, except counting their expenses.

By Karl H | January 5, 2010 2:51 PM

Maybe the Icelandic goverment should have worked out an agreement with the British and Dutch goverments before making the single-handed decision to guarantee Icelandic deposits in Landsbankinn in full?

By Thor | January 5, 2010 3:19 PM

Kristleifur Þorsteinsson: "IceSave was a private company owned by private individuals. The Icelandic nation had nothing whatsoever to do with this company."

Well Kris.. etc. the Dutch nation has even less to do with it!

By Steve | January 5, 2010 4:03 PM

Why are Councils taking such risks with Taxpayers Money?

What are Councils doing with Ratepayers Money investing in ‘High Risk High Gain’ accounts instead of Low Risk accounts?

This is on a par with going to Bookies and placing bets with our money is it not?

Signed Carl Barron Chairman of agpcuk

http://disqus.com/Carl_Barron/

By Carl Barron | January 5, 2010 4:03 PM

I am an independent observer. I think the Icelandic people are right that they shouldn't pay what they didn't get. The money went to the pockets of few individuals, and the people are forced to pay it. That seems unfair. However, the government should not have been borrowed money from the Dutch and British governments in the first place without consulting the people. If the people had been consulted during borrowing, they should not have complained now, but they were not consulted in the first place and they are right to complain about it. I think the government of Iceland should resign. The Dutch and the British should also understand that loss and gain are always there. I understand that international treaties should be respected, and strong stance helps to deter others from commiting similar mistakes. So I appreciate the tough position the Dutch are showing. However, they should not be too strigent. They should cancell the interest and try to get the real sum. If that is not possible they should send a message to the world that because Iceland is unable to pay its debt, the Dutch people are kind enough to cancell their debts. We appreciate the Dutch people's kindness to help other people in problem.
I think this is a better solution , but not the best solution

By F | January 5, 2010 4:10 PM

Can I borrow some money from the Dutch Goverment? I promise I might pay it back!

By George P | January 5, 2010 4:14 PM

we should just shoot every single banker, none of us should pay for their greed and failures, if we have tough times then so be it

By adhd | January 5, 2010 4:15 PM

I just feel sorry for the people who lose savings sometimes they save all live. I think this is most important to find solution for those people. And governments must control all banks for future.

By JJ | January 5, 2010 8:59 PM

or maybe the people who choose the risky high interest rate saving account in this bank should take their responsability for it ?

By francis | January 5, 2010 10:28 PM

Why did British and Dutch governments undertake to guarantee bank deposits in a private bank, particularly without first securing guanrantees from the Icelandic government? They ought to take stock in the bank as compensation, not expect Icelandic taxpayers to bailout Dutch and British taxpayers. Otherwise there will no end to socialism.

Free trade is beneficial to all parties, and blocked trade would tend to worsen the economic downturn.

I say this while a 4th-generation Icelandic-American and 3rd-generation Dutch-American. My views are determined objectively.

By kevin | January 6, 2010 2:45 AM

the icelandic government is at fault because they are responsible (like the DNB in NL, or FSA in UK) for the stability of their banks through regulation and auditing. Iceland failed to ensure the risks taken by their banks was within appetite levels and as a result their banks failed.

The reason for governments guaranteeing saving is to ensure stability of the economy and confidence in the banking system. If everyone's savings were wiped out where would we be? Keeping money under our mattrasses meaning the banks had no deposits to lend to companies and goverments meaning financial meltdown.

To blame individuals who in good faith put their money in banks with high interest or otherwise is simply flawed.

The NL and UK governments repaid the savings of people who lost money because a) they were responsible for the first 20k or so, and b) because they agreeed with Iceland that they would be repaid. They most likely repaid everyone to stop the mass panic and withdrawal of money from all banks which would cause meltdown as above.

Iceland will repay the debt or face sanctions and exclusion from accessing Europe. I think this will get sorted eventually. Unfortunate for Iceland, unfortunate for everyone really.

By hlm | January 6, 2010 8:29 AM

Regardless of what one thinks of this situation, it is amazing some people are using the word "socialism". This is capitalism in it purest form, and therein lies the problem!

By Joe | January 6, 2010 8:43 AM

The Landsbanki bank established the Icesave accounts in the UK and Holland on the basis of EU regulations which included a deposit-guarantee system with each European state being responsible for setting up its own independent guarantee scheme, into which its banks must transfer 1% of their deposits. The underlying principle is like that of an insurance company. All the banks pay a premium, and if one fails, then its depositors receive compensation up to a maximum amount of €20,887.

Read http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=154242712814 (NOT written by me) for the full unedited version.

So Icesave as a 'foreign' bank had a licence to operate in Britain and Nederland provided that the Icelandic government stood guarantee over the first 20k in every account. When the banking crisis hit Ireland and they raised their bank guarantee scheme from 20k to 100k per account for both national and 'foreign' banks based in Ireland the rest of EU had to follow suit to avoid upsetting their own banking system. So the UK and Dutch government were now liable for the remaining 20k to 100k per account with Iceland still liable for the 1st 20k per account. The 4 billion loaned to Iceland was this 1st 20k per account that they were liable for under the deposit-guarantee system.

It is an extremely complex problem and their is no easy answer. People can sit around trying to pin blame on each other but basically the whole system failed.

I am by the way one of those persons who had money in Icesave, only 5k mind you but it was my 5k that I worked hard to save up. And I am sick of hearing people calling it a risky investment. I looked into the terms of my contract before signing up and I knew that the Icelandic government was standing guarantee for the 1st 20k in my account. So I invested my 5k in the Icesave internet bank (which at the time was no different than the Dutch Rabobank equivalent in Ireland http://www.rabodirect.ie/) in order to get a higher return for my money. Every thing was all legal and above board and I had a state guarantee from a respectable country in Europe.

By Tom | January 6, 2010 9:10 AM

In the end, a government's base is its subjects. The Dutch government has some 16 million subjects, the British 61 million. The Islandic government has 306.649 subjects. The Dutch and British governments are naive and acting like bullies when they demand the Icelandic taxpayers (which are even fewer than the 306.649 subjects) to pay back losses that, after all, are caused by stupid investments. The demands are punitive and ridiculous if broken down to the level of the individual taxpayer. That is the perspective from which the actions of the Icelandic President must be viewed - no need for the Dutch government to snootily ask for an "explanation". They would have done the same in that situation.

By Nils Morner | January 6, 2010 9:53 AM

erm, i thought that the UK and Dutch governments guaranteed everyone's savings up to 100k and thus nobody is out of pocket? The bickering now is about who's footing the bill, right?

The icelandic people are, in my opinion, absolutely correct in opposing such a draconian measure, caused by a number of factors but socialism it certainly wasn't (typical dutch attitude: blame everything on the socialists who haven't been in power here!)

the global banking system has been exposed for the sham that it was and there were lots of guilty parties, greedy bankers, total lack of proper market control (termed: liberalisation), governments too content to pocket the profits and not think long term (40% of the UK economy is now dependent on the financial sector) and also, I have to say it, greed on a smaller scale by people who thought: "Well I'm getting 5% from this domestic savings scheme but I want this too-good-to-be-true 8% Iceland is offering."

By bankers...just say bankers | January 6, 2010 2:50 PM

Isn't Mr. Weekers mixing something up? Is he referring to Iceland, the Icelandic public, or merely the few Icelandic financial criminals, with whom some greedy Dutch trusted their money?

It took the Dutch (or was it the Netherlands, or just some stingy Dutch politicians?) over 50 years to repay the assets stolen from Dutch Jews during WWII. Over 90 % of the Jews killed. 50 years later it was difficult for some politicians to hand over the money. Talking about an untrustworthy lot!

No one was killed by the Icesave-bankers. How can the Dutch and the British authorities justify their greedy and unjust demands towards the 300.000 (roughly the population of Utrecht) large population of Iceland, who is supposed to pay back what Dutch hazard-hunters lost by risky business with some untrustworthy Icelandic bankers, who were allowed to operate in the Netherlands.

By costalot | January 18, 2010 2:28 PM