Air Chief Marshal joins the Order of the Garter, whose members usually include former PMs

When David Cameron said in a radio interview that he did not use Twitter because “too many twits might make a twat”, at least he had the excuse that he did not know what the word meant. It was explained to him afterwards by his press secretary Gabby Bertin, and he duly apologised.

Even if they succeed in beating down the level of costs demanded by the prosecution, Chris Huhne and Vicky Pryce will emerge from prison many thousands of pounds worse off than they were when they went in, and will need to earn money.

It seems a lifetime ago since Sir John Chilcot's stopped taking evidence for his inquiry into the origin of the Iraq War and went away to write his report. The public part of the inquiry began on 24 November 2009 and ended on 2 February 2011. Two years, two months and three weeks have since slipped by, with no firm indication yet of when we might see Sir John's conclusions. This is taking so long that even the House of Lords, a place in which time normally stands still, is showing signs of impatience.

Justin Welby, the recently enthroned Archbishop of Canterbury, has given his backing to heterosexual couples who want to enter civil partnerships – a right currently restricted to gay and lesbian couples.

"When you shop with us, you can pay how you want, when you want, where you want," says the PayPal website. Oh no you can't - not if you are trying to buy coffee from the York Coffee Emporium, a small family business run by Laurence and Philippa Beardmore, in a village called Nether Poppleton, near York.

Just when a large number of people had come to doubt it, it transpired that the Chancellor George Osborne is, in fact, human. A camera caught him at the funeral with tears in his eyes and a tear stain down his cheek.

Tony Blair’s gentle rebuke to Ed Miliband in the centenary edition of the New Statesman magazine has landed him with the problem that anything he says on any subject will be scrutinised to see if it contains another dig at the Labour leader. Over the weekend, he spoke at Judson University, near Chicago, where he was asked how he had managed to get along with President George W Bush, despite their ideological differences.

Andrew Mitchell, the former Chief Whip, has found a lucrative new way to fill his time now that he is no longer burdened with the responsibilities of government.

Vast sums are being added to the cost of the health service and welfare state because of illnesses that people contract from living in sub-standard housing, an environmental health body has warned.