Welfare climbdown lets genie out of the bottle, and no one knows what happens next

Government has double challenge to plug 5bn hole while restoring sense that it retains authority and control

A fortnight ago in a corridor near the House of Commons chamber, a close confidant of the prime minister smiled and shook his head when asked if the government could really lose the welfare vote.

MPs would come to their senses, he predicted, because they would eventually understand that to fundamentally undermine the government's authority would have consequences which no one could control.