Daily catch-up: the unelected House of Lords, defender of democracy

Last night's Government defeat in the Upper House over tax credits was not the only one

I have gone on about tax credits for a bit. I noted, when George Osborne delivered his July Budget, that the usual table showing the impact of its measures on low- and high-income households was missing from the Budget documents. This was because the tax credits cuts would be sharply regressive, taking from the working poor. Two weeks ago I predicted that Osborne would retreat in the Autumn Statement on 25 November. On Sunday I looked at how serious the cuts are, and pointed out how bad this was for Osborne's hopes of succeeding Cameron as prime minister in 2019 (and how good, therefore, for Boris Johnson's hopes).

Given that the Conservative Party is a minority in the House of Lords, one does have to wonder what the Prime Minister and the Chancellor thought they were doing. It was quite a procedural slip-up to put the tax credits cuts in a Statutory Instrument, which meant that, although the Government said last night's vote was "unprecedented", it was not explicitly ruled out by convention. Statutory Instruments are not covered by the rule that the Lords cannot block financial Bills, nor was this one covered by the Salisbury Convention, by which the Lords refrains from blocking manifesto promises. While a £12bn-a-year cut in "welfare" was in the Conservative manifesto, David Cameron and Osborne refused to spell out in the election campaign how it would be made.

No one seems to know what the House of Commons can do if the Lords throws out a Statutory Instrument. Osborne last night (above) said he intended to "achieve the same goal", and would set out his plan in the Autumn Statement, so presumably there will have to be some kind of emergency Bill to enact what he wants. I had assumed that the cuts to tax credits would go ahead but that the Chancellor would try to mitigate them with other measures. Last night's vote might be useful to Osborne in the long run, in that it might allow him – despite his defiant words last night – to start again.

• Last night was not the only occasion that the Lords has defeated the Government. Last Wednesday, peers voted down plans to withdraw windmill subsidies a year early, and hardly anyone noticed. Again, the Government claimed that the Lords had to pass its clause under the Salisbury Convention because it was a manifesto pledge. Labour's energy and climate change spokesperson, Baroness Worthington, replied that the manifesto said “we will end any new public subsidy”, and that this is an old subsidy.

The debate was also important for Lady Worthington setting out what might be called the "Corbyn Doctrine". She was challenged on Jeremy Corbyn's opposition to nuclear power and shale gas and said that was the leader's view and not party policy. "Jeremy’s style of leadership is not that he would impose that on departments." The Labour Party's energy policy, she said, came from Lisa Nandy, the shadow energy and climate change secretary in the House of Commons.

• And finally, thanks to Technically Ron for this:

"Yes I have come for one of the spoons that control the weather."

Wetherspoons employee looks terrified.

"Sir I shall not repeat myself."