On second thoughts, let ex-banker Fred Goodwin keep his pension. He might just use it to buy one of the ultra-desirable but somewhat costly new British cars heading our way.
A million-pound Aston Martin, a slightly less leviathan Rolls Royce, Bentley's fastest ever car and a Lotus with Porsche in its sights are all on schedule to lure the patriotic petrolhead financier, providing he's played it canny.
Actually make that four Aston Martins and a Lagonda badged 4x4 from the same company. The £1.2m One-77 will get the CEO salivating the most, made as it is from carbon, aluminium and priceless Constable paintings. (Not really).
Meanwhile, his missus will roll in the V12-powered Lagonda crossover that uses Mercedes GL tech to take on the Porsche Cayenne in three years or so. And rounding off the collection nicely will be the forthcoming V12 Vantage, convertible DBS and Rapide saloon.
Meanwhile over at Rolls-Royce, there's a disconcerting sign of realism. The new BMW-based saloon due in 2010 will cost under £200,000 and narrows the gap between chauffeur and boss by being slightly smaller than the Phantom.
Like the Rolls, this autumn's Bentley Continental Supersports sticks with a 12-cylinder engine but puts the focus more on speed. So much speed that you'll run out of track, money, sense and reality long before it stops accelerating at 204mph.
However, they're all in danger of losing the spotlight to an earth-stopping event: a new Lotus. The V6-powered Evora goes on sale in May to deliver not only the firm's first new car since 1995 but also, they say, the world's only four-seat mid-engined sports car. The Toyota-powered coupe makes 276bhp and sprints in 60mph in just over five seconds, but manages to return 32mpg.
Cheaper than the rest here too. The first few hundred spec-laden launch models are £59,000, dropping to below £50k for the standard spec.
Still though, not exactly pennies in a time when we're all feeling the pinch. The solution to boost Britain's luxury car industry is obvious: restore the banker's bonus and do it now.
