Getting the NHS to its 65th birthday without killing it completely would be a cause of celebration for any government, and joining in with the festivities is surely an easy public relations win for ministers.

So End Game was delighted to read the response to a parliamentary question asking what exactly ministers did to mark the happy occasion.

Minister Dan Poulter replied that Jeremy Hunt and Norman Lamb had set out proposals to improve care for vulnerable older people, and visited a couple of provider trusts, while he himself went to Southend University Hospital.

Earl Howe, for his part, visited Copes Pharmacy in Streatham, one of south London’s cheaper haunts. We might have cynically suggested the noble lord had simply popped in for a packet of aspirin and some cotton buds but we all know that wherever his local apothecary is, it isn’t on Streatham High Street.

Dr Dan’s response didn’t mention his colleague, Anna Soubry. Naughty Anna! End Game has its eye on you.