The other day having a coffee with an old friend we pondered, among more cheerful topics, the state of politics today. “Isn’t it something,” the friend said, “that this country has had twelve years of pretty average governments, and yet it seems to be coping quite well.”

He’s right; when you look at most economic indicators they are still quite positive: the economy continues to grow (as it has without interruption since 1992), unemployment is relative low, as are interest rates.