It is the Easter break in Britain, and I am about to go on holiday. My column will appear in the paper next Tuesday and will be re-published on the blog. Also, if war breaks out, I will make my way to the nearest internet cafe and post something.  Otherwise, I intend to fall silent for a week.

But I would like to leave you all, with a parting question. Lots of observers – including me – have been predicting that this economic crisis will have serious geo-political consequences. Niall Ferguson has written of an “axis of upheaval“. Harold James has predicted a reversal of globalisation. One of the prime ministers passing through London last week, told us that a political crisis would soon follow the financial crisis. Read more