On NR, we will only get the money back if individuals are stupid enough to hand over cash in return for NR bonds; IMO, not even worth the paper they are printed on and certainly not worth the risk with the returns they are talking about. Hence one of the reasons the radio 5 live money presenter calls them "Crock". Again, another issue Labour arent too bothered about as they know they wont be in next time and therefore not their long term problem. The fact is, NR are one of the biggest lenders to the UK Equivalent of US subprime going; massive loans to those that cant afford them, and worse, interest only morgages.
What scares me is this; Labour and the treasury wouldnt have dug this deep with NR UNLESS they werent expecting the credit crisis to unfold as deeply as it has, or didnt know how bad things are full stop. Which confirms one thing for me - they arent in the driving seat at the mo, which if you think about it, when they are supposed to be in control of the economy, is pretty scary. As for the military, public spending is going to have to get cut, lets face it, defence spending has never been one of Labours strong points, I dont think things are going to change overnight...
