Our politicians are only trying to do their best

This is a time for generosity and kindness; a moment for the cutting of slack and the making of allowances. These are, as most people now accept, unprecedented times. A great disruption to ordinary life that eclipses the two other great shocks to the system experienced this century. 9/11 and the great crash of 2008 were, in their different ways, man-made calamities. This is a beast of a different order altogether.

And that, I think, should prompt a reappraisal of our political leaders. To say they are making it up as they go is not a criticism but, rather, obvious reality. What else can be expected in these circumstances?

None of which is to say there are no questions to be asked or that scepticism about the extent and likely efficacy of the government’s proposals are somehow impermissible or unreasonable. That scepticism should be tempered by patience, however. The financial measures announced by the Chancellor yesterday are a start, not the finished article.