Two weeks ago, the European Union’s official economists delivered yet more bad news for the beleaguered region: the eurozone economy will shrink for the second year in a row in 2013.

Since 2009, European politicians have been able to blame this sustained stagnation on the global financial crisis. But, as time wears on, some are beginning to face up to the fact that it may well be the regulatory response to the crisis that is the real problem.