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Dear Sir,

With regard to HSBC, I think we have allowed maybe not a gorilla but perhaps an elephant into our island and we ought to take responsibility for that.

We behaved like mice and only squeaked when this giant came to our shores. I don’t know much about HSBC nor its workings but for an elephant that is accustomed to playing in vast expanses like the Serengeti Plains a tiny island as ours may not have been the appropriate place for it.

It is not an elephant’s nature to step gently; it would be naive to expect it to. I do not point a finger at our government (not that they ought to be excused) but to ourselves for having $$ in our eyes and ignoring what we felt inside when two of our significant historic institutions were all but given away.

I am guilty. Giants like HSBC make me nervous because they, like elephants, demand space and resources in proportion to their size and would not be here unless they had the power to secure it.

One thing we know about elephants is that even they are trainable. It is a bit late for the mice to roar but it is never ever too late to learn from mistakes and never too late to make changes.

Frances Eddy

Warwick

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