Brussels has just invented the mother of all price controls. A control that specifies the same maximum price across the whole of Europe. Not just wholesale price; retail price, too. This weapon is aimed at mobile telephone operators. Brussels says their roaming charges - the charges made for using mobile phones overseas - are too high. Its solution is to regulate so that all roaming charges in Europe are the same.

In 1984, British Telecommunications was given a price cap intended to hold the fort until competition arrived. But mobiles have been a high-growth, competitive and customer-focused sector for 15 years. Is competition now to hold the fort until regulation arrives?