Welcome Peter, nice to see you on here. It won’t surprise you to know that I don’t completely agree with your comments but I am a big believer that debate is healthy so I did really welcome them as it is good to get a different perspective. I agree with you that the UK is fairly morbid at the moment, and I understand that Japan has been through difficult times for a decade. Your points are interesting but I don’t believe it’s as simple as comparing like for like. I really don’t mean to create stereotypes but there are a lot of cultural differences that must be taken into account as these will invariably have the biggest impact in the differences in behaviour i.e. the way that the UK are being very open in talking about the current climate to the Japanese who potentially keep their feelings much closer to their chest. The UK has been shaken over the last few months because we are visibly starting to see some of our big brands collapse. Brands such as Woolworths and Zavvi were staples on the majority of UK high streets. You couldn’t pull up to a retail outlet without passing an MFI and companies such as Royal Doulton and Whittard which are regarded as being quintessentially British will soon sadly be no more. In less than two months we have seen all of these companies go into administration, companies that many people have grown up with so on the contrary, I completely understand why so many of your British friends are currently talking about it. It is predominantly the short time scale of such significant change that has caused the morbid undertone as first and second jobbers find themselves experiencing their first economic downturn, and their expectations of a mortgage and job security are now being threatened. You referenced LV doing so well out of a Japanese market which is great, but that is in Japan and again you cannot compare markets like for like. In the Observer on Sunday, it was reported that Chanel have cut 200 staff and have also cut back their shows for this year, Marc Jacobs reduced his live by 40% pre-Christmas to encourage spending and numerous designers who have taken the choice to cancel their menswear shows for the forthcoming year, all due to the lack of public spending. There are various geographical and national attitudes to recession, and economic issues are one of the challenges facing global brands and global agencies. What works for Louis Vuitton in Japan almost certainly won’t in the UK and that is where good marketers will rise to the top. In terms of “we are all in it together” I agree that this will need to be the tone once the dust has settled somewhat but in the current climate, it is not going to be welcomed by people who are losing their jobs and their hom