No not the BBC c-word, the Labour one – Champagne. Tempers were frayed all day yesterday, with touchiness from both sides of the House. Eric Pickles had a fairly light jibe at Labour MP Joan Ruddock, suggesting she might not be feeling the cuts because “I know she lives a champagne lifestyle — but £60 million is a lot of money.”

He seems to have hit a nerve, and received a pretty unnecessary reaction:

“I think you will know that I have been in this House long enough to take the rough and tumble of Parliamentary debate but the Secretary of State today, in response to an intervention I made, made a remark about ‘the hon. Lady’s Champagne lifestyle’  - It appeared to be directed at me. I find that really offensive and rude.”

Guido thought it was just the Tories that banned champagne, but it’s clearly a touchy subject in the new new Labour Party.

Bercow’s interjection riled the Tory benches as he helpfully pointed out that “I travelled to a number of places around the world with you and colleagues and I cannot recall you consuming champagne at any stage.” No wonder tempers boiled over in a showdown between the Tory Chief Whip and Bercow later on. Guido will let you be the judge, but there are signs that the Tory high command are not happy… either.

Philip Davis says he will rebel against Ken Clarke:

“I made a big thing in my election in Shipley that we would want to send more people to prison and provide more prison places… I’m not going to renege on what I promised my constituents at the election, even if others seem quite happy to,”

Early Day Motion 1137 wasn’t very popular yesterday:

That this House believes that it would be a good idea if all those individuals and organisations involved in the failed World Cup bid showed a little humility and good grace instead of continually whingeing and moaning about the unfairness of FIFA and the bidding process; while regretting that England was able only to accumulate two votes out of 22, congratulates Russia and Qatar on their success in bringing World Cup football to two parts of the world which have never hosted the World Cup before.

Only the most devout of pro-Russian MPs would have signed that surely? Guess who was only one of two signatures…

Yep… Handy-cock.

It’s a five years and a day since David Cameron beat David Davis for the Tory leadership, and still DD can prove a headache for his young usurper. Davis left the PM a delightful anniversary present in his announcement last night that he will be voting against the Tuition Fees rise on Thursday.

While many are whispering it’s typical of Davis to be looking for headlines and trouble, as it’s his second nature, Ben Brogan argues that Davis sees a gap as Leader of the Opposition, however some are  just pushing ridiculous lines. The former staffer who thought portraying Davis’s one man rebellion as something that might help the coalition, as it will take some heat off the LibDems, needs to go back to spin school…

Three uses of the C-word in one day on the BBC. Hunt took it with a smile, but they might come to regret upsetting the Culture Secretary, the Minister responsible for the Beeb….