HBOS slammed for £300k party for top staff

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HBOS received unwelcome press attention at the weekend as a Sunday paper caught 302 mortgage staff and 68 guests celebrating a "successful year" with a £330,000 five-star bash.

The group had tried to keep the party secret amid fears it could be considered in bad taste after its recent £11.5bn bail-out by taxpayers. It is also on the verge of agreeing merger terms with Lloyds TSB. However, the party didn’t remain a secret for long as revelers danced in the streets of Edinburgh, according to the reports. Comedian Patrick Kielty provided the entertainment by making jokes about the credit crunch and poking fun at the audience’s excess in the current climate saying “Your secret is safe with me.” The News of the World estimated rooms for the guests at top Edinb...

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