Andrew Lloyd Webber really did fly back from New York and vote for tax credit cuts

This was the week the government warned of a looming constitutional crisis after the House of Lords scuppered George Osborne's plans to cut tax credits.

Amid questions as to whether the plans were included in the Tory manifesto, and a renewed debate over whether peers had irrevocably overstepped their bounds, one particular detail of the biggest story in Westminster went viral: the fact that Andrew Lloyd Webber had flown back from New York to support the government.

The notion of a multi-multi-millionaire Tory lord jetting into London to vote in favour of a government measure that could leave millions of families worse off clearly struck a chord, with Lloyd Webber's name top trending on Facebook and Twitter.

The government said no taxpayer money was spent on flying Baron Lloyd-Webber into the Lords, while the composer himself has insisted he was actually in London to watch the musical Cats.

He posted on Facebook:

Not everyone was convinced, however:

Osborne is now expected to reveal how he plans to lessen the effect upon tax credits while still cutting welfare spending (and the deficit).

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