FACTBOX-Major bank bailouts by the government

(Reuters) - Prime Minister Gordon Brown defended his reputation for sound economic management on Monday in the face of mounting criticism over his decision to nationalise ailing bank Northern Rock Plc.

The government, which rejected two private sector-led bids for the bank, announced on Sunday legislation allowing it to take over Britain's fifth-largest mortgage bank.

Following is a list of some previous bank nationalisations or bailouts by the government:

Bank of England

Clement Attlee's Labour government brought the Bank of England, which had been privately owned since 1694, into full public control in 1946.

Slater Walker Securities

Slater Walker Securities, owned by Jim Slater, veteran stock market guru, nearly collapsed in 1975 amid allegations that it lent money to an associate company in a questionable share support scheme. The Bank of England intervened in October 1975, advancing the firm 70 million pounds as a standby facility.

Johnson Matthey Bank, National Home Loans

In 1984 the Bank of England rescued Johnson Matthey Bank, buying it for one pound and putting in its own managers to run it. National Home Loans hit trouble in 1991 after a fall in UK property prices, plus closure of the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) which hit liquidity at its National Mortgage Bank subsidiary.