Far be it from us to suggest that ringing Eno is what bands do when they've run out of ideas (U2, James, Coldplay) but it will be interesting to see if Nick Clegg decides to make policy on the basis of Bri's famed Oblique Strategies cards.

"State the problem in words as clearly as possible" and "What to increase? What to reduce?" seem like sound advice for politicians. You might even be able to get away with "Honour thy error as a hidden intention" - although Mark Oaten might have found that one a tough sell (better than "Look closely at the most embarrassing details and amplify", though).

Maybe Nick will strike lucky and pull the card that reads "Use your own ideas".