Italy, grumbling on the sidelines about EMU convergence criteria and what it perceives as mischievous attempts by some EU partners to blacken its economic credentials for the single currency club, this week lightened the burden on the stuffed wallets and bulging handbags of its long-suffering citizenry.

The Bank of Italy, in an attempt to reduce the quantity of dog-eared bills in circulation, has introduced a 500,000 lire bank note, the equivalent of £180 and five time the value of Italy's largest bank note. Two notes now make a lire millionaire, apart from reducing the myriad of paper currency the average Italian is obliged to carry on a daily basis. The bank has printed 30 million of the new paper which is expected to cut the total number of bills in circulation by 20 per cent, making those Armani suits even more streamlined.