So, Gordon is lauded as the saviour of our economy, his fortune in the popularity polls has staged a dramatic comeback and he must be feeling a little smug that the Conservatives lost their deposit in Glenrothes.   Not that the latter was really ever in doubt and, I suspect, he is more pleased that the SNP rennaisance seems to have temporarily stalled.

But the big issue amidst all this economic drama has to be the big picture of what to do.   There is no panacea, quick win or low hanging fruit - they are as ephemeral as their titles suggest.   In todays immediate must have world the risk is that as a consequence of our impatience for action, we do the wrong thing.

This crash gives us - in fact requires us - to make some deeper long term decisions about our economy and its' place in the world.

The truth is that in pure terms of productivity we are quite insignificant.   We have built success on the back of global financial markets which until recently performed well.   Despite all the criticism of the fat cat bankers, remember that without the global liquidity they provided it would have been well ...   more »