Yesterday was a day for hard truths and straight talking.

It began with City veteran Lord Rose who said the UK is “at the edge of a crisis.” The former M&S chief and Asda chair said that after working for more than 50 years, and despite a predisposition to optimism, he looks at the state of the country today and shudders.

The problem, in a word, is growth. Or, in three words, lack of growth. “We have got no growth in the economy,” he said, adding that “if you have no growth in the economy, you’re not creating........

© City A.M.