Allow failure

Carillion must not be bailed out by the UK taxpayer. Failure is an essential part of capitalism. It is not the role of the government to bail out failing businesses. The government should regulate the marketplace so that failure is less likely. The bail-out of the banks in 2008 by Gordon Brown and Alistair Darling was a mistake. If RBS and HBOS had been allowed to fail there would have been a couple of months of financial instability, then the middle management of the failed institutions would have used their skills to bring new financial products to the market.

Instead, we have had nine years of vast sums of money being poured into a bottomless pit. The behaviour of the banks post-2008 is one of the factors in the failure of Carillion.

Nobody should be too big to fail. The lessons of failure are harsh but they serve as a warning to others that financial prudence is necessary for survival in the capitalist jungle.

JOHN BLACK Woodhollow House, Helensburgh