The story going round about 'what Gordon told Tony'  about the 10p tax rate beggars belief. We are asked to believe that Gordon, quizzed by Tony, said only 25,000 people would be affected in advance of delivering the Budget speech last year.

To which the only real response is: why on earth did Tony Blair believe him? 25,000 people? Really? Just how bad is the former prime minister's mental arithmetic?