The chancellor and business secretary's showdown with the banks has been postponed because of the weather.George Osborne, stranded in New York, and Vince Cable, had been due to threaten Britain's five largest banks with further taxation and regulation unless they water down this year's bonus round.They hope chiefs of Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), Lloyds, Barclays, HSBC and Standard Chartered will agree to limit payments. The meeeting will be rescheduled. Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said last week the government will not "stand idly by" if banks pay wealthy traders millions of pounds in bonuses.Cable is keeping his eye out for "scandalous" and "completely unjustified" payouts and has promised "robust action" if lenders ignore warnings.Coalition leaders are keen to avoid any bad publicity concerning bonuses for millionaire traders at a time when many Britons are struggling to get by."We can't go through the winter series of bonuses without real restraint and social responsibility," Cable told the Andrew Marr Show yesterday.While he wouldn't be drawn on what action would be taken if the banks ignored government advice, he suggested "some form of taxation" would be likely. There's talk RBS, 84%-owned by the taxpayer, is trying to limit cash bonuses to £50,000.But highly-paid traders, used to hundreds of thousands, or even millions of pounds, could be reluctant to accept. Banks fear an exodus of quality staff if there is no industry consensus on packages.