British Conservative leader David Cameron on Thursday endorsed the latest U.S. proposals to make banks repay some of the costs of the public bailout that saved the financial system last year, and told The Associated Press that as prime minister he would go toe-to-toe with British bankers to bring them in line.
In the interview, Cameron also told The AP that British troops in Afghanistan should only be withdrawn after the country has achieved a “basic level of security.”
Cameron, expected by many to be Britain’s next prime minister when elections are held later this year, told The Associated Press that two of President Barack Obama’s new proposals to limit risky behavior by banks and to collect money from the banking industry to repay some taxpayer sacrifice would have his backing.
Cameron, leading in opinion polls to become the next British prime minister after 13 years of Labour government, said he sees the proposed steps as part of a “moral problem.”
The endorsement stood in contrast to many of the bankers and financial managers attending the annual World Economic Forum here, who have been raising concerns about what is seen as a new populist mood to regulate banks. It also conflicts with the view of many Republicans in the United States, who have been cool to the Obama banking proposals. (AP)
