More evidence of the "Scottish Mafia" - the group of corrupt, out-of-touch Scotsmen, or those with a Scottish influence, that is slowly bringing Britain to its knees.
Whilst Britain plunges into its first recession since 1991, Treasury staff working for Britain's Scottish Chancellor of the Exchequer donned their kilts to attend a Burns Night celebration party on at the Treasury on Friday night. Burns Night, which is tonight (25th January), celebrates the life of the Scottish poet Robert Burns who died in 1796.
Britain was officially in recession on Friday - the very day the party was held.
But angry employees at the Treasury who thought that trying to get Britain's economy back on track was more important were outraged as the party interrupted their work.
Knees-up at the Treasury as Britain plunges into recession
By Simon Walters, Martin Delgado and Tom Harper
25th January 2009
Daily Mail
Scottish poet Robert Burns, 1759-1796: Treasury staff - those in charge of the British economy - though that donning kilts and downing whisky to celebrate Burns Night is more important than rescuing the recession-hit economy
Whitehall mandarins in charge of saving Britain from the economic slump drank whisky and danced the night away at the Treasury on the day the recession was officially confirmed.
More than 100 civil servants who work for Scots-born Chancellor Alistair Darling took part in a Burns Night party at the Treasury on Friday.
They drank large quantities of white wine and whisky, ate haggis and danced until close to midnight, prompting complaints from other officials who were still hard at work trying to deal with the economic crisis.
Smiling in the face of recession: In evening dress and Scottish kilts, officials leave the Treasury after Friday's Burns Night bash
Some revellers at the black-tie party, several of whom were wearing kilts, appeared to be swaying on their feet as they emerged from the Treasury main entrance, yards from Downing Street, after the bar closed at 11pm.
The antics prompted a revolt from some of Mr Darling's own officials as new evidence of the political and economic panic caused by the recession came to light.
• City Minister Lord Myners revealed that the UK's banks had been three hours from total collapse on a 'Black Friday' in October and had threatened to lock their doors and close down all hole-in-the-wall cash machines.
• Labour MPs called on the Prime Minister to sack Mr Darling following complaints that he has lost control of the Treasury and the economy.
• There are fears that the growing sense of crisis could trigger a fresh meltdown when the Stock Exchange opens tomorrow, with Barclays in deep trouble.
Scot free: More kilt-clad party-goers appear oblivious to the country's economic woes
The Treasury Burns Night party took place shortly after new figures showed that Britain's economy had declined in two successive quarters - the official definition of a recession.
Gordon Brown gave a major interview to the BBC in an effort to reassure voters that the Government was working flat-out to ensure the economy recovered.
In it, he finally admitted that the Government - and Treasury - had some responsibility for leading the country into recession.
He said: 'What we did not see, what nobody saw, was the possibility of market failure.'
But hours later officials at the Treasury showed no signs of guilt as they let their hair down inside the building at the wine-and-whisky-fuelled Burns Night bash.
There was little evidence of the gloom that has descended on the British economy as civil servants celebrated the traditional Scottish festival with a meal of smoked salmon and boiled haggis.
The lavish do, held in the majestic Treasury building in Whitehall, began at 6pm and was still going at 11.30pm when the last few civil servants emerged to hail black cabs.
By then, some of the revellers seemed a little unsteady on their feet while several female officials in cocktail dresses were helped towards waiting taxis.
A passing black cab driver caught sight of the kilted men exiting the 270-year-old building and struggled to contain his anger.
'The Government has been taken over by the Scottish Mafia,' he said. 'Scotland has independence in all but name yet they swagger down here and decide what happens in England. And look how well they have done! It is plain wrong.'
Not everyone in the Treasury was in the mood for fun. Some officials were still burning the midnight oil at their desks as their colleagues partied downstairs.
One stressed worker went outside for a cigarette at 10pm. She said: 'The bash was open to all employees at the Treasury. It was a staff bonus. I could have gone but some of us felt it was a bit out of order - we've got too much to do upstairs trying to save the economy.'
Another female official who emerged from the party a few minutes later disagreed. The woman in her mid-30s, who wore a small black dress and matching pashmina, complained that staff were forced to contribute towards the event.
'We each had to pay £30 for a ticket and all we got was a three-course meal and half a bottle of wine,' she said. 'There was no free bar, we had to pay for the whisky. If you think this is civil servant largesse then you are mistaken.'
On leaving the party one of the guests, who was wearing a kilt, revealed that a raffle had taken place during the dinner - and joked about the paucity of riches on offer.
'Second prize was a set of aerial photographs over Scotland,' he said. 'But nothing could beat the first prize - a bottle of gin signed by the Chancellor,' he added with a sarcastic laugh.
Grinning goon: One more happy reveller exits the £30-a-ticket party
The Burns Night bureaucrats came and went through the famous entrance on Horse Guards Road where, on Budget Day, the Chancellor makes his trademark departure clutching his red box. The building has expansive views towards Buckingham Palace over St James's Park, created by King Henry VIII in 1532.
The party came at the end of a week where the Treasury committed a further £350billion of taxpayers' money to a second bank bailout; unemployment reached almost two million; and the National Grid slashed its forecast for electricity consumption this year as thousands of businesses cut production.
However, criticism of the party came as Labour MPs claimed Mr Darling was in danger of losing backbench support.
'Alistair is in an impossible situation and cannot be blamed for the economic problems,' said one. 'But there is a growing feeling that he is struggling at the Treasury and that we need someone with more confidence to generate the kind of confidence needed to get us all out of this hole.'
A Treasury spokesman defended the party, saying: 'The Treasury is working flat-out to put things right. People have been working round the clock during the week and at weekends. This is an annual event which is a social gathering for staff and they pay for it themselves.
'Some have cancelled holidays and worked ridiculous hours in recent months. It was a Friday night when lots of people like to go out to relax.'
The spokesman said Mr Darling did not attend the party and had returned to his Edinburgh home earlier on Friday.
The spokesman also said the event was in aid of charity. While none of the partygoers who spoke to The Mail on Sunday referred to the charity aspect of the function, it is understood proceeds of the raffle are to be given to the family of a Treasury employee who died recently.
dailymail.co.uk
Whilst Britain plunges into its first recession since 1991, Treasury staff working for Britain's Scottish Chancellor of the Exchequer donned their kilts to attend a Burns Night celebration party on at the Treasury on Friday night. Burns Night, which is tonight (25th January), celebrates the life of the Scottish poet Robert Burns who died in 1796.
Britain was officially in recession on Friday - the very day the party was held.
But angry employees at the Treasury who thought that trying to get Britain's economy back on track was more important were outraged as the party interrupted their work.
Knees-up at the Treasury as Britain plunges into recession
By Simon Walters, Martin Delgado and Tom Harper
25th January 2009
Daily Mail
Scottish poet Robert Burns, 1759-1796: Treasury staff - those in charge of the British economy - though that donning kilts and downing whisky to celebrate Burns Night is more important than rescuing the recession-hit economy
Whitehall mandarins in charge of saving Britain from the economic slump drank whisky and danced the night away at the Treasury on the day the recession was officially confirmed.
More than 100 civil servants who work for Scots-born Chancellor Alistair Darling took part in a Burns Night party at the Treasury on Friday.
They drank large quantities of white wine and whisky, ate haggis and danced until close to midnight, prompting complaints from other officials who were still hard at work trying to deal with the economic crisis.
Smiling in the face of recession: In evening dress and Scottish kilts, officials leave the Treasury after Friday's Burns Night bash
Some revellers at the black-tie party, several of whom were wearing kilts, appeared to be swaying on their feet as they emerged from the Treasury main entrance, yards from Downing Street, after the bar closed at 11pm.
The antics prompted a revolt from some of Mr Darling's own officials as new evidence of the political and economic panic caused by the recession came to light.
• City Minister Lord Myners revealed that the UK's banks had been three hours from total collapse on a 'Black Friday' in October and had threatened to lock their doors and close down all hole-in-the-wall cash machines.
• Labour MPs called on the Prime Minister to sack Mr Darling following complaints that he has lost control of the Treasury and the economy.
• There are fears that the growing sense of crisis could trigger a fresh meltdown when the Stock Exchange opens tomorrow, with Barclays in deep trouble.
Scot free: More kilt-clad party-goers appear oblivious to the country's economic woes
The Treasury Burns Night party took place shortly after new figures showed that Britain's economy had declined in two successive quarters - the official definition of a recession.
Gordon Brown gave a major interview to the BBC in an effort to reassure voters that the Government was working flat-out to ensure the economy recovered.
In it, he finally admitted that the Government - and Treasury - had some responsibility for leading the country into recession.
He said: 'What we did not see, what nobody saw, was the possibility of market failure.'
But hours later officials at the Treasury showed no signs of guilt as they let their hair down inside the building at the wine-and-whisky-fuelled Burns Night bash.
There was little evidence of the gloom that has descended on the British economy as civil servants celebrated the traditional Scottish festival with a meal of smoked salmon and boiled haggis.
The lavish do, held in the majestic Treasury building in Whitehall, began at 6pm and was still going at 11.30pm when the last few civil servants emerged to hail black cabs.
By then, some of the revellers seemed a little unsteady on their feet while several female officials in cocktail dresses were helped towards waiting taxis.
A passing black cab driver caught sight of the kilted men exiting the 270-year-old building and struggled to contain his anger.
'The Government has been taken over by the Scottish Mafia,' he said. 'Scotland has independence in all but name yet they swagger down here and decide what happens in England. And look how well they have done! It is plain wrong.'
Not everyone in the Treasury was in the mood for fun. Some officials were still burning the midnight oil at their desks as their colleagues partied downstairs.
One stressed worker went outside for a cigarette at 10pm. She said: 'The bash was open to all employees at the Treasury. It was a staff bonus. I could have gone but some of us felt it was a bit out of order - we've got too much to do upstairs trying to save the economy.'
Another female official who emerged from the party a few minutes later disagreed. The woman in her mid-30s, who wore a small black dress and matching pashmina, complained that staff were forced to contribute towards the event.
'We each had to pay £30 for a ticket and all we got was a three-course meal and half a bottle of wine,' she said. 'There was no free bar, we had to pay for the whisky. If you think this is civil servant largesse then you are mistaken.'
On leaving the party one of the guests, who was wearing a kilt, revealed that a raffle had taken place during the dinner - and joked about the paucity of riches on offer.
'Second prize was a set of aerial photographs over Scotland,' he said. 'But nothing could beat the first prize - a bottle of gin signed by the Chancellor,' he added with a sarcastic laugh.
Grinning goon: One more happy reveller exits the £30-a-ticket party
The Burns Night bureaucrats came and went through the famous entrance on Horse Guards Road where, on Budget Day, the Chancellor makes his trademark departure clutching his red box. The building has expansive views towards Buckingham Palace over St James's Park, created by King Henry VIII in 1532.
The party came at the end of a week where the Treasury committed a further £350billion of taxpayers' money to a second bank bailout; unemployment reached almost two million; and the National Grid slashed its forecast for electricity consumption this year as thousands of businesses cut production.
However, criticism of the party came as Labour MPs claimed Mr Darling was in danger of losing backbench support.
'Alistair is in an impossible situation and cannot be blamed for the economic problems,' said one. 'But there is a growing feeling that he is struggling at the Treasury and that we need someone with more confidence to generate the kind of confidence needed to get us all out of this hole.'
A Treasury spokesman defended the party, saying: 'The Treasury is working flat-out to put things right. People have been working round the clock during the week and at weekends. This is an annual event which is a social gathering for staff and they pay for it themselves.
'Some have cancelled holidays and worked ridiculous hours in recent months. It was a Friday night when lots of people like to go out to relax.'
The spokesman said Mr Darling did not attend the party and had returned to his Edinburgh home earlier on Friday.
The spokesman also said the event was in aid of charity. While none of the partygoers who spoke to The Mail on Sunday referred to the charity aspect of the function, it is understood proceeds of the raffle are to be given to the family of a Treasury employee who died recently.
dailymail.co.uk
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