The recent smattering of snow across some extremities of the British Isles got me thinking about booking a holiday for Christmas 2012, anticipating time with the family and relaxation.

"We’re doomed, doomed!" said Corporal Fraser, the undertaker on the much beloved TV series Dad’s Army, and there were echoes of this last week in the Lib Dem conference in Liverpool. Lord Newby, the Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesman was quoted as saying, “The traditional model of the IFA looks to me like a doomed species. I think there will be a drift away from old fashioned financial advice.”