Why save banks if they will not lend?<\/p>\n
That has become a significant political issue on both sides of the Atlantic as governments confront the reality that preventing the financial system from collapsing is not the same as repairing it.<\/p>\n
In Britain, that led the government of Prime Minister Gordon Brown to announce a new round of bailouts, with a twist. \u201cIn return to access to any government support, there will have to be an increase in lending, and that will be legally binding,\u201d\u009d Mr. Brown told a news conference today.<\/p>\n
In the United States, aides to President-elect Barack Obama sounded a similar theme. \u201cThe focus isn\u2019t going to be on the needs of banks,\u201d\u009d Mr. Obama\u2019s chief economic adviser, Lawrence H. Summers, said. \u201cIt\u2019s going to be on the needs of the economy for credit.\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n