The government's £500 billion package to restore economic confidence was today dubbed "too little too late" by Kent financial experts.

Under a three-part rescue deal £50 billion of taxpayers' cash is being made available to eight of the UK's largest banks and building societies in return for preference shares in them.

The Bank of England will also pump at least £200 billion into the money markets under its special liquidity scheme.

The government is also making a further £250 billion available for banks over the next three years to guarantee medium-term debt.

Announcing details of the bailout, Prime Minister Gordon Brown said it was "designed to put the British banking system on a sounder footing".

Mark West, Gravesend-based insolvency specialist for chartered accountant Berley, is busy dealing with several service and retail businesses who are going into administration in the county.

He said of the scheme: "This is clear case of 'too little, too late'.

"This will help the economic situation but it's not enough.

"This should have been done a long time ago. There has been endemic financial problem over the last two years and only now that its affecting the man in the streets is anything being done.

"I don't think the government will allow any UK financial institution to fall over.

"It can't because of the domino effect in bringing down businesses.

"As it is, our businesses will suffer for three to four years and it could be five to seven years before we are back on an even keel,

"I don't believe we have seen the worst of it.

"There is already a lot of distress among some of the people I deal with.

"There will be an awful lot of casualties."

The collapse of Icelandic online bank Icesave, affecting 300,000 savers, has added to the urgency for a government scheme to restore confidence.