By appointing the hard-headed Sir Nigel Rudd as chairman of BAA last year, Ferrovial ensured that the group’s likeable chief executive, Stephen Nelson, would be squarely in the line of fire if the airports operator’s problems were not tackled swiftly. So it has come to pass.

The heat Mr Nelson has taken since the Spanish took control in 2006 is not all his fault. Some problems were a legacy, some the responsibility of others. But one can only imagine the frustration in Madrid as the stories of “Heathrow hassle” mounted and Ferrovial’s chances of easily refinancing the group’s £9bn of debt receded.