RBS staff expected to party for £10

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Staff at other banks have been told to be discreet about theirs. But for Royal Bank of Scotland, seen by many as the centre of the banking crisis that has stricken world economies, the Christmas party goes on.

The Edinburgh-based bank, which has thousands of staff in London, is giving £10 each towards staff Christmas parties this year, enough to buy two pints of lager and a packet crisps please, says news wire Bloomberg.

Even companies outside the bank sector have been forced to cancel staff Christmas parties due to constrained finances.

RBS, now 84% owned by the taxpayer and in receipt of a multi-billion pound bailout to prop up its ailing balance sheet, says its staff need a drink. "Our staff have worked very hard over the last 12 months," an RBS spokesman told Bloomberg.

"We won't waste bank money, but the long-standing tradition of paying a small contribution towards staff parties has been judged appropriate."

The gift of £10 each may not go far, but taxpayers may not think the bank deserves any sort of knees-up at their expense. Other banks are also drowning their sorrows. HSBC is giving staff £20 a head, while employees of Lloyds, which got

£23 billion in state aid, can spend up to £35 at the Christmas bash.

Goldman Sachs, the Wall Street giant, has again cancelled its party.