London - Britain's Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) Thursday confirmed it had made record losses of 24.1 billion pounds (34.7 billion dollars) in 2008, believed to be the biggest in British corporate history.

RBS, which had to be bailed out by the government last year, also announced a major restructuring programme focussed on placing
325 billion pounds of so-called toxic assets into a scheme that offers insurance against any future losses.

The Asset Protection Scheme, backed by taxpayers, aims to strengthen bank balance sheets and encourage banks to lend more to firms and individuals.

The government owns more than 70 per cent of the bank, which has been hit by lending excesses and the takeover of Dutch giant ABN Amro in late 2007.

The figures were released as controversy raged over reports that the bank's former chief executive, Fred Goodwin, will receive an annual pension of 650,000 pounds despite leading the bank to near- failure. (dpa)