Hey Pesto! BBC’s biz ed confronts his north east critics

Did Robert Peston’s reporting of Northern Rock actually create the conditions for the crisis to get worse? That was the charge levelled against the BBC’s business editor when he travelled to Newcastle to meet people who lost jobs and investments as NR unravelled.

An item on last night’s Newsnight showed Peston’s obvious discomfort taking questions about it on regional TV and radio. He was accused of putting his ego over the public interest and causing the run on the Rock that saw people queuing up outside branches to withdraw savings.

While it’s often said that media commentators can talk us into recession, you have to feel sorry for the journalist here. No one can dispute the anxiety and stress caused to worried savers and staff of NR, but it wasn’t a single reporter who was responsible. NR failed because institutions stopped lending to it and the government was forced into a bailout. That itself led to anxiety, sure. But in the heat of reporting a fast moving story, you can’t withhold information because people might be anxious about it.

Peston made a good point. Whatever the government was going to do over the future of NR, the BBC reports and blogs were not ever going to be the deciding factor. A classic case of ‘Don’t shoot the messenger’.

Keeping pension plans on track

Don’t let this “multiple-whammy” recession derail your long-term financial planning - if you can possibly help it.

That was the key message to around 60 employers and business people at a networking lunch in Eastleigh today.

Nigel Odling from the stockbrokers and financial services experts, Charles Stanley & Co, gave an interesting talk on the importance of keeping an eye on pension arrangements during this tough economic period.

He said that while the population was living longer there would be increased pressure on financing our retirements and it was more important than ever to make the right choices and not bury our heads in the sand.

More acutely, the “multiple-whammy” of the present recession signals reduced income for pension contributions, a contraction in fund values, and severe impact on people relying on annuities.

And while inflation may be low right now, any future rebound could affect the value of investment savings put aside for retirement.

Mr Odling said he believed confidence in the economy was something that takes time to nurture and he urged everyone, employers and individuals, not to neglect pension planning despite the current difficulties.

Using the analogy of a train entering a tunnel, he said you don’t stop in the middle and get off or start looking for your ticket – you stay on and wait for the light at the end.

Certainly, with final salary schemes disappearing and stakeholder plans perhaps only part of the final payment mix, more and more people will have to get pension savvy to remain on board.

Today’s event, held at the splendid Concord Club in Eastleigh, was hosted by Southampton & Fareham Chamber of Commerce & Industry.