Ananova:

Royal Bank of Scotland has reported an 8% drop in earnings as it outlined plans for its £20bn Government-backed rescue amid the credit crunch.

The troubled British bank said full-year figures would be hit by rising bad debts and writedowns.

They totalled £206m in the third quarter, on top of £5.9bn in the first-half of the year.

RBS is raising £5bn under the Government's part-nationalisation scheme.

It is appealing for another £15bn from shareholders under a plan which is underwritten by the Government.

RBS said a group-wide overhaul was under way and it hoped to buy back the Government's £5bn stake "as soon as it is prudent to do so".

Incoming boss Stephen Hester - who will take over from Sir Fred Goodwin formally later this month - said RBS was aiming to pay back the £5bn of taxpayers' cash before its next dividend decision in early 2010.

RBS said bonuses had yet to be determined, but added it had to be "mindful" of its 170,000 staff.

Mr Hester said a strategic review would look to trim costs, focus on profitable businesses, reduce risks and reduce reliance on wholesale money markets.

Speculation had suggested that the new chief executive would be looking to move out of the US and Asian markets, but Mr Hester said RBS was expected to "remain global".