The consultants McKinsey has returned to one of the business and economic issues of our age, the massive debts of the rich developed countries that borrowed excessively to fuel growth in the boom years.

BBC: US ahead of UK on road to reducing debts

Many now see this era as a fools' paradise - during which pretty much everyone had an exaggerated faith in the stability of the economy, such that banks lent too much, many businesses and consumers borrowed too much, and the government fooled itself into thinking that tax revenues flowing in from a debt-fuelled boom would be sustainable.

BBC: Can the Bank of England hit any target?