A US official has claimed that Chinese hackers have penetrated the White House computer network and read official e-mails. If so, why? As the lamest of lame duck administrations quacks its way towards the finish, surely the Chinese did not expect to find anything coherent.

Yet there is a logic to this. Almost a year ago, the director of MI5, the UK security service, warned financial services companies that Chinese state enterprises were attempting to break into their systems. Presumably the Chinese stole the strategic plans and sophisticated risk management systems of Lehman Brothers, Bradford & Bingley and Landsbanki. The Bush White House was the obvious next step.