RBS is not in the public sector! It still has to compete in the market and eventually must be sold. #bbcqt

Melanie Philips is spot on re: lynch mob attitude on bankers. #bbcqt

Q for Mark Steel: exactly what level should RBS executive pay be brought to? £300 p/w? #bbcqt

Anyone else wish our political leaders gave Hester's bonus-style scrutiny to every £1 million of state spending?

US debt to GDP 100%. Portugal 106%. Difference? #IMF can help Portugal, THE US IS TOO BIG TO BAIL! #teaparty #tcot #aip #P2 #rush #beck #aip

How the Euro has boosted the German economy - some fascinating calculations by Citigroup bit.ly/x2HcIG

Germany gains hugely from 'artificially low' exchange rate (see last RT), but doesn't want to pay for an adequate bailout fund.

1/2: Unions have always prevented bonus/incentive pay modernisations in public sector...

2/2: ...Now Ed Milliband wants to strip bonus culture in private sector, starting with banks.

Finally! #Russia bans paying #bribes abroad bit.ly/zkl149

Somalia: Journalist killing highlights need for international action on impunity owl.li/8O8EE

I will say it again: Education doesn't CREATE jobs. More education just means more unemployed graduates, as we've now discovered. #bbcqt

For anyone who longs for the decline of the US, this day is worth remembering. The alternative to the US is...China & Russia.

Cleaning up poor regulations is “about as helpful as ordering a Diet Coke with your deep-fried butter-on-a-stick.” bit.ly/ym7TuS

Abed Alhamdou عابد Qaradawi supports #Syria but not #Bahrain, Nasrallah supports Bahrain but not Syria! Sectarian-basis, I see a pattern here.

Looking forward to Paxman's series on Empire, starting tonight on BBC1, 9pm.

Watch Salafi presidential candidate Hazem Abu Ismail explain why Muslims shouldn't buy Pepsi. Words don't do justice: bit.ly/HKNx82

It would be nice if #Egypt had a president who would make battling the culture of conspiracy theory one of his priorities.

Not just Islamists. A top #Egypt official - a "liberal" - insisted to me US had grand master plan to install both MB & Salafis in govt.