So the UK has slipped back into recession, as new figures published this week revealed that the economy has shrunk by 0.2 per cent in the first quarter of the year.

So, the European Court of Human Rights has upheld its earlier view that member states do not have to grant same-sex couples access to marriage. In a landmark judgement, the court has thrown out the test case of a female French couple who were trying to secure marriage rights under clauses that prevent discrimination and protect privacy and family life.

The ruling, which states clearly that “the applicants’ legal situation could not be said to be comparable to that of married couples”, has come just days after the Government published its controversial ‘consultation paper’, which has the personal backing of David Cameron. The judges also pointed out that, if any country did push ahead and introduce ‘same-sex marriage’, then its Churches would be guilty of discrimination if they refused to conduct such ceremonies.

One of the biggest questions still hanging heavy in the air after the furore this week surrounding Government plans to redefine marriage, was the significant mystery as to who exactly is behind this attempted seismic upheaval in social values.

Why is it that we still can’t seem to take proper care of our elderly? In a damning report this week, the Commons health select committee has charged that some elderly people are suffering hardship and diminished quality of life because of cuts to services.

Few tears were shed this week when Fred ‘the shred’ Goodwin was stripped ignominiously of his knighthood. In the face of economic recession and genuine hardship being suffered by so many, the “cancellation and annulment” of his title was seen by most as inevitable, and justified.

The intervention of Lord Carey into the increasingly embittered welfare debate