Their very lack of short-term depositors and wholesale counterparties means it should be possible to restructure insurers’ balance-sheets without causing a wider financial scare.

Germany stepped up efforts Tuesday to trace the source of a bacteria outbreak that has killed 25 amid warnings it might never be found, while the EU pledged aid for vegetable farmers hit by the scare.

Scare tactics may not be necessary when trying to get patients at risk of heart disease to change their diet or behaviour, a new study has found.