And the more ghastly it looks across the channel, the more the UK looks like a better bet, and the easier and cheaper it is for the UK government to borrow.

BBC: Would euro solution be costly for Treasury?

Like any other business in the UK, a football team could be bought and sold by anyone who could borrow enough money.

CNN: May 18, 2012 -- Updated 1609 GMT (0009 HKT)

To put it in more practical terms, a monetarily and fiscally integrated eurozone should be able to borrow as cheaply and easily as the other major developed economies, namely the UK, US and Japan.

BBC: Eurozone nations�� sovereignty v AAA

As I have pointed out here before, if the Debt Management Office hadn't done quite such a brilliant job in borrowing for long maturities - such that the average maturity of UK debt is just under 14 years - the UK might well be like Italy in finding it very hard to borrow at any price right now.

BBC: Would euro solution be costly for Treasury?

Even though that 2.3% is a bit higher than it has been in recent days, it is cheaper than it has ever been for the UK government to borrow, whereas the Spanish and Italian governments are being forced to pay punitive interest rates.

BBC: Why investors love lending to the UK government