David Cameron has apologised to veteran Labour MP Dennis Skinner after he made fun of the 79-year-old's age.

Last month the Bolsover MP tackled the prime minister in the Commons over whether culture secretary Jeremy Hunt should keep his job given questions over his links to News Corporation.

Cameron responded: "Well, the honourable gentleman has the right, at any time, to take his pension and I advise him to do so."

Speaking in the Commons on Wednesday the prime minister appeared to recognise that his past comments had not gone down too well.

"I deeply regret my last intervention, it was a bit more sharp than it should have been, I hope he will accept my apology for that," Cameron said.

"He is a tremendous ornament of this House and always remains the case."

It is not the first time the prime minister has responded aggressively to questions from Skinner. In January he made another joke widely seen to be a slight against his age.

Cameron said: "I often say to my children 'no need to go to the national history museum to see a dinosaur, come to the House of Commons at about half past twelve."

Today's apology came less than an hour after he was forced to withdraw an attack on shadow chancellor during prime minister's questions after he called him a "muttering idiot".