Spreading deposits in UK Banks

Hi guys,regularly browse the site and find it extremely informative,but this is the first time to post.I have half of my savings/inheritance in Northern Rock and was thinking of moving the other half from INBS (1yr term due to expire shortly) to Nationwide UK. i am principally concerned with the security of my deposits for the moment, and was wondering do people think that even though the British Bank Guarantee may be more secure than our own, that it may still not be a good idea to have all my savings in British banks alone??

The more diversification the less the risk. I myself have spread deposits between Irish(Perm TSB+Ulster Bank) / UK(Nationwide UK) / Dutch(Rabo) and Belgian (Keytrade). I feel safer never to have all eggs in one basket!

how can the irish government guarantee bank deposits when they have no money to guarantee them with?

They cant, thats the scary thing. The bank gaurantee is a contradiction in terms.Its purpose is to reassure depositors that their money is secure , but if deposits were really secure there would be no need for this unlimited gaurantee and the subsequent extensions to it.