I have been reading a report from the Sector Skills Development Agency (now happily defunct). It claims to compare the efficiency of industrial sectors in Britain with the same activities in other countries. Britain is second from bottom in financial services. We are slightly behind the US, but well below stellar performers such as Italy and Belgium. The report notes that the large size of the industry means that this poor showing holds back Britain's overall economic performance.

Alarm bells might have rung. If Britain's financial services companies are so bad, why are they so successful? But no: the report notes that Britain's retailers, feared and respected around the world, also do badly on these productivity measures.