Speaking in an interview with the BBC interview ahead of the G20 summit, Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling warned bankers that the party is over and they must realise that the world has changed. The Chancellor, who said he wants a limit on bonuses and rules to allow banks to be able to get them back if bankers make losses later, also stated his view that there was a limit to how much could be achieved by regulation and that bankers must realise that they have to change their behaviour. Instead, Mr Darling expressed his preference for regulations to force banks to limit the proportion of their profits that they can give out in bonuses and make sure there are no rewards for failure, which the Financial Services Authority is preparing to put such regulations in place.

"The key thing to get across to bankers is that for them the party has got to be over," he said, adding: "We've got to get into a situation where they behave sensibly. After all, there are very few bankers in the world who would still be standing if it hadn't been for the fact that taxpayers all over the world had to step in and save them last year."