Rarely can such an exhaustive two-year investigation, that gathered submissions from 700 interested parties and held 80 hearings across the country, have delivered such a clean bill of health of a £120 billion industry.

Despite vehement protests from the small store lobby and consumer watchdogs, Tesco and its supermarket rivals emerge unscathed with the Competition Commission dismissing any idea that their buying power poses a threat to rivals lower down the food chain.

The call for an ombudsman will add to red-tape, and the Competition Test will prove an irritant to Britain’s biggest retailer. However given what it was feared the Commission may have come up with, Tesco should regard the findings as a minor triumph.

The watchdog even adds there is no reason why Tesco’s position in the market place should not be insurmountable. No wonder its shares went up nearly 2 per cent.

Peter Freeman, the Competition Commission chairman, mounted an admirable defence of his work despite criticism from all sides within hours of the report being made public.

He argues that while the taxpayer has been left with a £2 million bill, he can only do the work he is appointed to do and added that the absence of any widespread problem should not mean the investigation itself was meaningless.

However supermarkets, given the estimated £50 million cost in legal fees and man hours devoted to the investigation, will hope he stays true to his view on whether he was likely to recommend another inquiry in the coming years. “Not in my professional lifetime,” he smiled.

Times Recommends

• Minister in talks with Saudis to protect creditors
• Premier Inn hits back in £29-a-room row
• Bankers hit back at 'populist' bonus supertax