While the debate continues endlessly in Whitehall about who's responsible for the state of the economy, and which levers of power should be pulled, pushed – or just caressed – the fact remains that, out in the real world, most people just want to have a job.

Local government, to me, is similarly divorced from this.  It matters not whether they believe in Keynes or Friedman, they just want to do their bit for the economy – and not just to help it improve now, but to see the benefits in future years as well.