BANKING unions were complaining yesterday at plans to sack thousands of Royal Bank of Scotland staff as a cost-saving measure.

I am certain that the fact the announcement of the bad news came on the same day that Brussels agreed a series of measures to pump cash into the motor industry won’t have been missed on them.

Why should government intervene to save carworker jobs and not those of people employed in banks?

The banks, though, have already had their share of government support. It was essential they got it when they did but that money wasn’t invested to save bankers from the dole queue. Instead, it was to save depositors from losing their life savings, and consequently the Government, from political disaster.

Britain and the rest of the world could not afford to let the banks collapse. That’s not so true of any one car plant. The country would not implode and governments would not fall if a plant were to close. Hence, business secretary Lord Peter Mandelson’s reluctance to pump in short-term working capital support. That is something he is simply not going to do. Instead, he will call the carmakers’ bluff on that one.

So the aid that the car industry is receiving now from Europe is about the right response to its plight. Demand for cars will remain low for many months to come. The industry’s salvation will have to arrive over the longer term.

To be ready for the revival in consumer spending, the car industry needs a range of products that are fit for a more environmentally-conscious age. Those carmakers that have laid some green plans are the ones that will prosper in a few years’ time. It’s good news that Jaguar Land Rover is to receive European Investment Bank support for the necessary investment.

In contrast, harsh though it may seem, this leaner, fitter Britain of a few years time is probably also one that has fewer bankers in it.