Buybacks, paybacks – the economic answer to the crisis

The Sun this week asked why Richard Branson isn’t offering to sell his island retreat to pay the wages of Virgin Atlantic staff. Phil Dobbie suggests that’s a moronic question, and the real criminals in this financial crisis are the companies who bought back shares to inflate executive salaries, rather than keep cash on hand to cope with emergencies such as this. One guilty party here is Delta Airlines, which owns 49% of Virgin Atlantic, way more than Richard Branson. On Balls Radio we suggest how to save airlines whilst penalising those who benefited from share buybacks. Plus, the simple way for governments to make stimulus payments to those who need it, whilst encouraging companies to keep people in work.