The first secretary was in spirited form on the BBC this morning. Andrew Marr hardly laid a glove on him. But Mandelson’s response to the tenor — if not the detail — of Andrew Rawnsely’s allegations over Gordon Brown’s rages can hardly be called a denial.

Mandelson basically accused David Cameron of not caring enough about politics to lose his temper as he admitted that Brown is “quite emotional” and “will get angry but chiefly with himself”. He said there was a degree of impatience. “But what would you like? Some kind of shrinking violet at the helm as we go through such choppy waters.” Read more

On Thursday in the Notebook column I reported the early stages of a merciless bureaucratic assault on the army stables.

It makes passing reference to Dudley, a six-year-old Irish-bred grey gelding, who is fitted with a leopard-skin saddle as mascot for the Queen’s Royal Hussars.

The article suggests that Dudley, like the other MoD horses, has a “through life cost” to the taxpayer of £150,000. This deserves to be corrected. A reader has let me know that Dudley may actually be a private military company, only indirectly benefiting from taxpayer support.

I would like to point out a quite significant misconception in your notebook piece: Dudley is not paid for by the defence budget but by the officers of the regiment, who all chip in to fund his procurement, through-life costs, and  personal equipment. Technically he may therefore be a Private Military and Security Company.

Dudley, please accept my apologies. The full notebook extract is copied below. Read more

Lots of controversy over whether the Israeli ambassador was summoned to see Sir Peter Ricketts, the head of the Foreign Office, or invited. Here is a brief guide to the diplomatic lexicon.

An invitation: Typically to dinners or functions. A staple of diplomatic life. Can be declined in most instances without causing offence. Read more

It was to be expected. But Paul Krugman, Nobel prize winning economist and chief Gordon Brown cheerleader, has revealed that we have another letter heading our way on how fast to cut the deficit.

There’s an economists’ duel underway in Britain. Everyone agrees that Britain needs to address its underlying budget deficit; but how fast? One group of prominent economists has published a letter saying that cuts should start more or less immediately. Read more

Three reasons why Tory co-operatives may be a radical idea that few workers will want to take up in practice:

1) Demand  Read more