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Good Morning The first job I had ever had was with the Co-op. The big difference, when I was a teenager, was the pride people took in being members of the group which ran the supermarket in which I worked. I remember the pleasure with which they collected their dividend stamps, which they would save up for their holidays. When the Co-operative Wholesale Society was launched in 1863 it only took 9 years for the first bank to be created. An article in an edition of the Co-operative News some 20 years later celebrates how the society was much more than a business venture or a bank - playing a role, as it did, in social and cultural life, particularly amongst the working classes of northern England. Yesterday’s shocking results for the Co-op Bank were just another sharp twist in an appalling helter skelter ride for staff, members and managers alike. The losses capped another awful week for the bank that always wanted to be different. The churches, led in this country by the Archbishop of Canterbury, have been amongst the keenest advocates of a more ethical and fair banking system. In emphasising the biblical principles of avoiding dishonest practises, engaging in socially-responsible stewardship and looking after the poor – even to the point of churches and dioceses setting up their own credit unions – the very foundations on which the co-operative movement were founded are being remoulded for a new generation. It is interesting, in all of the analysis of the Co-op’s plight, that few specialist reporters representing the financial sector are highlighting an essential paradox that people are wanting a return to the kind of founding principles in the wider banking sector at the very moment when their difficulties are most polarised. In North America, and many parts of Europe, co-operative style banks are much more prevalent than the dwindling number of pure building societies left in Britain – just when people want to make a statement as to where they choose to put their money. There is no shortage of biblical references to how important it is to be fair in financial and other dealings between peoples. The Old Testament, particularly the prophetic books, have plenty of warnings about fairness, balance, equity or, as Jeremiah warns, unless you reform now disaster will surely strike! [26.13] Nehemiah, in a bit more gentle fashion, creatively suggests that now is indeed the time to put things right, before it is too late. A pertinent message for the directors of the Co-op Bank for sure – but an equally applicable rallying call more broadly for those striving hard to put the financial sector to rights.