Money Creation and Society

Debate between Douglas Carswell and Michael Meacher

Thursday 20th November 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Meacher]

Again, that takes me down a different path, but there is considerable read-across.

[Douglas Carswell]

The right hon. Gentleman has been absolutely magnificent in diagnosing the problem, but when it comes to the solution and passing power away from banks, rather than passing the power upwards to a regulator or to the state, would he entertain the idea of empowering the consumer who deposits money with the bank? Surely the real failure is that the Bank Charter Act 1844 does not give legal ownership of deposits to the person paying money into the bank. The basis of fractional-reserve banking is the legal ownership the bank has when money is paid in. If we tackle that, the power will pass from the big state-subsidised corporations and banks outwards to the wider economy.

[Mr Meacher]

I have great sympathy with what the hon. Gentleman is saying—