When Britain’s economists admit they are pinning their hopes on the Olympics to create ‘a feel-good factor that helps consumer confidence’, you know they must be clutching at a rather large pile of straws.

Today’s high street spending figures make disappointing reading, bursting the bubble of optimism which the games is currently creating around the nation.

People are spending more time at home, thinking far more carefully before splashing out on big-ticket items like kitchens, furniture or holidays, and increasingly shunning the local high street.

Because no amount of sporting success can take away from the fact that Shropshire households feel their spending power being squeezed, and remain very wary about what the future holds.

July was certainly not a golden month for retailers; not helped by the washout of a summer.

It remains a real challenge for retailers to grow their sales, and many are only managing to do so by slashing prices at the expense of profits.

For the smaller shops in Shropshire’s market towns, this is a dangerous and high-risk strategy which cannot go on for long.

The most worrying aspect is that there is no sign of a white knight charging over the hill with a magical solution.

The Government clearly recognised the need for a boost when it relaxed Sunday trading laws, allowing larger shops to open for longer during the Olympics.

But, on today’s evidence, it seems the Chancellor may now need to step in again, to find a way of giving people the confidence to spend more freely.

After yesterday’s public spat between Nick Clegg and David Cameron, it is more vital than ever that the coalition patches up its wounds, sorts out its priorities, and works together to get us through these troubling times.