There's an easy way to tell when a government is deep in the brown stuff: every day it makes self-important statements designed to divert attention from a catastrophic loss of direction.

Every day, I'm asked to support a charitable cause – to do a funny drawing, send a signed book, go on a group walk, donate a pair of specs or a frock. Sadly, it rarely involves just sticking my hand in my pocket, handing over cash or writing a cheque. It's as if charities think they need to sugar the pill of donation by coating it with a "fun" activity – so donors get something in return for their generosity: an object bought at auction, the completion of a physical feat, like today's marathon. Once people ran long distances, walked across countries and climbed high mountains for the pure challenge and the sense of accomplishment; now, 99 per cent of the time, these activities have to be carried out for a good cause.

The findings of the report into the causes behind last summer's riots fell back on that over-used piece of political jargon, the term "stakeholder". It claims that one of the reasons people didn't take part in the looting was because they "did not want to jeopardise their stake in society". The report's chairman, Dara Singh, a former council leader, says "we must give everyone a stake in society.... When people don't feel they have a reason to stay out of trouble, the consequences for communities can be devastating."

George Osborne's Budget – a complex set of financial imperatives painstakingly designed to take sickly Britain Plc a tiny, faltering step down to the road to solvency – has opened another bout of class warfare. According to critics, a gang of public school toffs have looked after their mates, while pensioners and the lower orders have been treated with contempt. Swingeing taxes have been imposed on stuff the working class loves – sausage rolls, fruit machines, cheap booze and fags – while top earners get a tax break. A gross simplification, but surely one of the reasons the country is stuck in the doldrums, with the threat of a "double dip" recession, is that we see everything in terms of class.

Calls for reform, from filing to fitness, have hit the rigid mindset that blights a once proud service

If marriage were a car, it would be heading for the scrapyard. Like an old banger that has repeatedly failed the MOT, a soaring divorce rate seems to indicate that modern marriage isn't fit for purpose. The chances of the majority of unions lasting more than a decade are increasingly slim. At least when buying a car, you get a warranty – and, it doesn't answer back when you lose your temper or demand half the assets when you part company.

Kate Middleton spent Valentine's Day last week visiting the Brink dry bar in Liverpool. She's patron of Action on Addiction, and the idea behind the Brink is to make having a night out without alcohol as fun as the alternative when you get slaughtered. I know about this, because my partner (a non-drinker) has been supplying his non-alcoholic drinks to the Brink since they opened last year and was gutted he couldn't get there to see HRH in person. The Brink is a brave new venture in a city where too many young people think nothing of getting off their heads every weekend. Unemployment is high, booze is cheap; no wonder it's tempting to seek oblivion.

Steve Hilton, Dave Cameron's "blue sky thinker" might be parodied online and mocked for his ghastly taste in casual wear, but I'll give him credit for one thing – persuading the PM to attend a get-together last week with the heads of the Nordic Baltic countries. Yes, the countries whose television drama we've fallen in love with – intelligent, civilised fare like Borgen, Wallender, The Killing and - soon to come, The Bridge and Lilyhammer on BBC4. This group includes the brave nations (Norway and Iceland) who decided to implement a quota of 40 per cent women on the boards of their public companies. And guess what – nothing ground to a halt and economies didn't implode. There's so much to like about this group, even if you're not a fan of oily fish and snow.

Editor at Large

Editor at Large