Little wonder no-one can determine the policy of the European Central Bank; even getting to talk to its executives is an exercise in endurance.

Whether it has anything to do with Wim Duisenberg's mishap in the London Times, a recent effort to interview ECB executive director Mr Padoa-Schioppa turned into such a marathon that the Margin demurred, beaten by a wave of bureaucracy.

Mr Padoa-Schioppa's minders agreed it would be okay to interview him but only if they could have in advance a detailed list of questions and if they could approve each quote from the interview to be used in the final published article. So much for the new Europe, complete with its freedoms and the accountability of its officers . . .