Fred Goodwin avoids criminal charges over Royal Bank of Scotland's near-collapse

Ex-Royal Bank of Scotland boss Fred Goodwin will not face criminal charges over the bank's near-collapse.

The Crown Office said there was "insufficient evidence" to take action against Goodwin or any other individuals.

It follows a five-year investigation into the bank's failure in October 2008.

The UK government was forced to use £45 billion of taxpayers' money to bail out the bank.

Goodwin was heavily criticised for his role in its near-collapse, which experts believe played an "important role within an overall financial crisis which produced a major recession."

He was stripped of his knighthood in 2012 due to the "scale and severity of the impact of his actions".

RBS is still 73% owned by the taxpayer and some shareholders are engaged in a multibillion-pound civil action against the bank over the rights issue.