In praise of checks and balances - boom and bust

Briefly, political debate between the ruling Labour Party and Britain's opposition parties about the wisdom/folly of ending boom and bust seems to have been mangled by the pressures of the 24-hour news cycle. When Gordon Brown as CHX set out to end role of government in creating conditions of boom and bust, it seemed to me his error was presuming that the checks and balances in regulation, and sound banking practice were sufficient to sustain the integrity of the banking system. That is what has been found wanting in the extreme, not the need for prudent government borrowing/spending, which is now being used as a rod for his back as PM. What are the messages coming from the National Economic Council and its regional offshoots? I think we should be told. I can't believe they are urging Labour not to borrow more to help ease recession and get the economy moving again. The golden rules were relevant when the banks were banks, and not casinos risking everyone's savings. When the Tories say they want an Office of Budget Responsibility, perhaps what they should be asking for is an Office for the Prevention of Reckless Banking Practices - that's the real cause of the current crisis not Brown's management of the British economy.