I recently found myself in Groningen, a Dutch provincial town, on family business. I happened to go to its hospital, which was immaculate, well provisioned and well organised. If you arrived laid out on a stretcher, you’d feel reassured and relieved.

I also went to the town’s new civic building. The architecture, scale and finish had the quality of a luxury mall. It housed a brilliantly quirky library, a range of user-friendly community spaces full of interesting activities, and a clutch of cafes and restaurants. On a Sunday afternoon, it was full of people.