Miliband bank debacle: has he just thrown away the election?

The value of taxpayer-owned banks drops by £1bn – and Osborne outflanks him with £7 minimum wage support

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(Image credit: 2011 AFP)

MORE than £1bn was wiped off the share price of banks owned by the taxpayer today as Ed Miliband’s plan to break up the retail banks began to look like a full-blown political debacle for the Labour leader. As of 2pm, RBS had dropped in value by £560m and Lloyds by £460m.

Long before Miliband laid out plans to force the banks to open up to more high street competition, share prices were tumbling.

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is the pseudonym for a London-based political consultant who writes exclusively for The Week.co.uk.