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Northern Rock

I beg to move, To leave out from ““House”” to the end of the Question, and to add instead thereof:"““endorses the approach taken by the Government to Northern Rock to maintain financial stability, protect the interests of taxpayers and safeguard the position of depositors; welcomes the publication of a statement of principles underpinning the Government's response to proposals received by Northern Rock with regard to its future; acknowledges that Northern Rock has announced that it is continuing to explore a range of options as part of its strategic review; recognises that the Government continues to keep all options open in relation to the future of Northern Rock; and notes the Chancellor's assurance that he will keep the House fully informed of further developments with regard to Northern Rock.””" I am looking forward to the debate and particularly to the contributions of Back Benchers, but I thought it might be helpful if I made three main points. I shall talk about: first, the wider context to the events of the last few months; secondly, the current position with Northern Rock; and thirdly, any lessons to be learned for the future from what has happened. The UK entered the recent period of turbulence in the global financial markets in a very strong position. The UK economy has seen 61 consecutive quarters of growth—the longest period since records began—and we are growing faster than any other G7 nation this year and will continue to grow next year.