As so often happens in the history of the world, people are in advance of their governments in responding to change - they have already started to tighten their belts. Skiing holidays have been cancelled, home improvements postponed, old cars kept going and gym subscriptions dropped. This year, Skegness instead of the Adriatic beckons. Fewer are flying first- and club-class - 20 per cent less, according to British Airways - and the head of every private school has a list of pupils withdrawn. There can be no one who does not know of someone who has lost their job. Applications to go to university have increased as young people postpone the time when they may have to join the ranks of the unemployed.

This spring, a popular book on mail order has been Fix It, Clean It and Make It Last: The Ultimate Guide to Making Your Household Items Last Forever. It's full of useful tips. To make your liquid soap dispenser last longer, fill it with water when it is half empty. To make your batteries last longer, file both ends with an emery board. Cola stains can be removed not by dry-cleaning but by applying white vinegar within 24 hours. Don't buy expensive aromatherapy oils - just add two teabags with a couple of orange slices to the bath. And there are tips on how to iron your trousers, something that anyone who has done National Service doesn't need.

This book is in stark contrast to the magazine published by the Financial Times called "How to Spend it", where you have a choice of watches starting at £25,000, a real snip of a yacht for £10 million and, to keep your girlfriend happy during the recession, some earrings for £170,000. But the Age of Bling is dead. Conspicuous consumption is an insult and will only exacerbate social tension. In this new age the FT should bring out a magazine on "How to Get it" and then a second on "How to Keep it".

The British people are scrimping and saving in order to survive. The British government is doing the opposite, splashing out, hoping that by spending more the recession will be halted. Not a week passes without Gordon Brown announcing a new spending gimmick - the cost doesn't matter, budget deficits are in, and the next generation can pay. There is a complete disjunction between the psychology, the instincts and action of the people and those of the government. The cry is that if only the banks would lend more and the public buy more as they did in the Age of Abundance then the black clouds would roll away and we would bask in the bright, sunlit uplands. This is a delusion for it fails to recognise that there will be much less economic activity in the years ahead - less will be made and less will be bought. Downscaling is going to be very painful.