With a package worth more than £16m and payments of £650,000 per year for the rest of his life no wonder Sir Fed Goodwin is trying to hang onto his pension from failed bank RBS.

And this all comes at the same time has his bank  RBS announce the biggest loss in corporate history and require a further £13 billion bail out from us, the taxpayer - equivalent to every person in the country handing over about £215.

The problem is of course Sir Fred was at the helm of this bank at the time of its demise and arguably can be held at least partially responsible for the strategic decisions that ultimately proved so costly, not just to the bank but the taxpayer as well. Which of course is why he had to go at the time of the collapse.

So why then did the bank offer Sir Fred such a massive pay off? A bank fails, and they not only agree to pay his pension etc but top it up with what we now know are discretionery elements.  It’s smacks less of a golden goodbye and more of a golden shutup and keep shtum.

I think first and foremost the board of RBS needs to explain and justify to the British taxpayer WHY these massive discretionery elements to his pension scheme were paid at the same time as they were going cap in hand to the Government.

Secondly if all reason and moral obligation fails to persuade Sir Fred then it really is incumbent on this Government to take all necessary action.

The message has to be sent out loud and clear that as a country, and especially in times such as these, we cannot sit back and reward failure, especially when that failure leads directly to financial misery, and employment uncertaintly to be heaped on fellow employees and all associated with RBS.

Thirdly the Government has to take action to ensure that this nonsense one rule for the those at the top of the tree, one rule for the rest culture is ended once and for all.

I have always believed in fair pay for a fair days work. That should extend to all employment benefits and apply to everyone, from the cleaner to the Chief Exec.

Lets hope common sense and a sense of moral duty comes to the fore in the meantime.