But speaking exclusively to the Courier, outgoing chief executive Andy Hornby said he did the only thing he could under the "unbelievable" circumstances.

The Halifax was swallowed up as part of a takeover deal with Lloyds TSB when its share prices plummeted and the world money markets began to veer wildly.

Mr Hornby said: "Of course I bear personal responsibility because I am the chief executive. But it was under unbelievable conditions."

Mr Hornby rejected claims it was a situation of "Lloyds or bust" but admitted the deal needed to be secured quickly.

He said: "It was much better to get everything secure and to get the deal completed. Firstly to get the best deal for our shareholders and also for the long-term growth of the franchise.

"We will be able to grow the business more over the next five to 10 years."

He gave his full backing to the Courier campaign to keep jobs and key services in Halifax.

"Absolutely," said Mr Hornby. "I'm going to be working very closely with the team.

"Halifax will be an absolute lead brand. It would be utterly logical to build the business around that.

"The deal was only completed on Thursday but Lloyds TSB's chief executive Eric Daniels has already been incredibly clear about how much he values it."

Mr Hornby said most of the Trinity Road workers could expect their jobs were safe.

He said: "The vast majority will stay because of the vast scale of the business."

He said the company was proud of its Yorkshire heritage.

Mr Hornby swept away claims that one in four HBOS branches could close.
He said the estimated 40,000 job cuts were "massively exaggerated" and "complete nonsense."

"I genuinely don't have any number in mind," he added.

Mr Hornby did hold up Lloyds TSB's estimations of 10 per cent total cost cuts across the board – not concentrated only on the workforce.

Mr Hornby said merger talks with Lloyds TSB began five weeks ago.

He avoided questions about his feelings during last week's bank turmoil, but said the urgency increased as the global market chaos erupted – including the fall of American investment giant Lehman Brothers. Mr Hornby said: "They were extraordinary circumstances. It was the most uncertain financial market in 100 years. I wanted to get the deal completed.

"First contact was made about five weeks ago but then we speeded up the conversation hugely."

Mr Hornby's comments came before a meeting last night between Minister for Yorkshire Rosie Winter-ton, Yorkshire Forward chief Tim Riordan and Lloyds TSB bosses in Manchester. They descri-bed the discussions as constructive but said no guarantee on jobs had been given.

l In an internal memo to HBOS staff, Mr Hornby defended the takeover decision and said it would create a "financial powerhouse."

He told them it could take up to three years to bring the two institutions together.

He also said there would inevitably be job cuts but workers were likely to stay within the enlarged group.

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