IN these days of continuing austerity when we are seeing savage cuts to public services and the proliferation of food banks in the UK, it is good to know that one section of society is faring rather better.

Actually, you couldn't make this up. The very institution which caused the crash, sparked austerity for us all, was bailed out and is still 72 per cent- owned by the UK taxpayer (that's us) is £7 billion in the red almost 10 years later and its chief executive is handed a bonus package worth £1.2 million (“RBS gives £5.9m bonuses less than two weeks after slump to £7bn in the red”, The Herald, March 9)?

I'm having trouble processing the information in this article so please bear with me. RBS has posted cumulative losses of £58 billion since falling into state hands. It is preparing to close more branches and further job losses will follow. It is £7bn in the red. It has paid – just for this year – bonuses worth £5.9 million to nine executives and the management team also has the opportunity to share in new long-term awards worth up to £22 million due to vest between 2020 and 2024. Am I getting this right? Well, thank goodness these people also have some long-term financial security, the rest of us will sleep a lot easier.

Chairman Sir Howard Davies says “staff should not be penalised for the sins of the past”. May I enlighten Sir Howard: we are all being penalised for the sins of RBS, and some humility wouldn't go amiss.

As for the oft-quoted argument that RBS needs to pay bonuses to “retain and motivate its executives”, it's clear that this strategy works for retaining RBS executives but not motivating them. For the rest of us who work for a living there is a motivational strategy that works really well – we do the work we're contracted to do and in return are paid our salary. When we don't do what we're paid to do we're invited to leave.

This state of affairs is utterly obscene and it's time these people were held to account by us all.

Carol Vanzetta,

Blaeshill Road., East Kilbride.

SO nine human beings are being given £5.9 million extra for doing, or not doing, the job for which they are already being paid a tremendous salary. The usual banal and childish reasons are given to justify this nonsense. Pity these people are not educated in concepts such as morality, fairness and equality. Bring in a maximum wage law.

B McKenna,

Overton Avenue, Dumbarton.