I must admit I thought today's PMQs was the best bit of House of Commons theatre I've seen in months. It was one of those occasions when everyone's prediction was wrong. Even Harriet Harman's friends thought she'd get roasted by William Hague, but they - and we - were wrong. She'd done her homework, prepared brilliantly and was able to counter some excellent put downs from William Hague with some wit of her own.
The Labour backroom staff had obviously worked out that Hague would focus on Zimbabwe so they got a Labour backbencher (Eric Joyce) to ask a question on that. It rather cut the rug from under the Shadow Foreign Secretary who had to rephrase his first question on the support the world should give Zimbabwe to rebuild.
Hague then moved on to ask about the abolition of the 10p rate of tax, a question Harman neatly avoided. She drew howls of laughter from the whole House to a putdown by Hague about her dress sense when she replied that the man who thought it was cool to wear a baseball cap is the last person she would take fashion advice from.
Sadly Nick Cleggover was also absent, which deprived MPs of the opportunity to come out with a string of double entendres which might have made Kenneth Williams wince. But all was not lost. Vince Cable was finally brought down to earth having been brought to order by The Speaker for daring to mention HM The Queen in his question.
So all in all, highly entertaining stuff from Harman and Hague. If I was being kind to Mr Hague I'd call it as a high score draw but I think if I'm being honest, Harriet Harman just shaded it. Perhaps she should give Gordon Brown some lessons.
Later today I'll post a post-PMQs interview I just recorded for Friction TV with Labour MP Andrew Mackinlay.
22 comments:
Cripes I must be going soft, because even as a lefty-wefty I gave Vague a narrow win!
Harriet was better than Brown's early efforts, but she put up a rather feeble defence of the 20% basic rate of tax.
Cable was the worst I've ever heard - didn't he know his first question would be wasted if he led with HRH's "opinion"?
I couldn't disagree more. She didn't answer any questions. She recited a preprepared script exonerating the government from all blame for everything and giving a head in the sand view of life in the UK. And she delivered it all in a shouty voice as though she was a bossy prefect addressing a class of mentally deficient 5 year olds. Harriet thinks she's cleverer than everyone else and would do a better job of being PM. Her performance today showed just how deluded she is to think she'll ever be anything but an also ran.
Whippy Clogg was not present I fear not enough people have done the maths.
If the number is one all his statements can be true. Any other number and one of them is wrong. So is Clogg a liar boy and a lover boy? Or none of the above?
PS If Desperate Dan is right where does that put Cameron who answers DD's description rather well i'd have thought.
She started off well and her team had correctly anticipated various questions and had some good ripostes. She began to lose it after Hague's third question and retreated into sterile formulaic answers which won't have convinced voters worried about the economy. I was surprised William didn't come back on the last question to remind everybody that the UK doesn't have the room to manoeuvre on the economy because of the government's spending spurges. We have to get over the point that although there is a credit crunch we will feel the effects more because of Brown's actions as Chancellor.
Her lack of mental dexterity was revealed in her last reply to Peter Bottomley when he asked about the government's change to the way inflation is calculated "I will ask the Chancellor to write". Clearly she was pleased to have got through the half hour.
Harriet was good.
Loved the joke from Hague about the clown in cabinet and equally the one from Harman about the baseball cap.
As you say it was pure theatre.
Just a pity Vince Cable cocked up big style like he did because he's got good form for the same sort of thing!
I thought Harman was rubbish. Abovd all she sounded 'shrill', but was not that what lanbour mysogenists used to say about Thatcher? And of course she had no answer to the 10p tax band.
About time Cable was exposed.
The trouble with Harriet - is she's so bloody po-faced and comes across as a smug and self-satisfied "Head Girl" of Cheltenham Ladies College
She may not like to be told this but she has to exhibit a little more humour and smile more.
However I will concede she didn't do too bad against Hague and it was a refreshing change from "The Supreme Leader" - although I'll still be voting Conservative at the next election.
I think Iain has it just about right. My main thought was that Harman was better than Brown. She didn't fluff her lines (even if they were learnt) - she genuinely got the House behind her (which Brown can't do) and scored some hits (again something Brown can't do). Didn't think Hague was on good form. But overall it was worth it for the theatre and to get up Gordo's nose!
This is what I love about your blog. You don't feel you have to bash Labour all the time just because you're a Conservative. It really gives credibility to everything you say.
Harperson saying that Theresa May should have be asking the questions was rubbish.
Harperson was there as the Deputy Labour Leader not as the Leader of The House.
The clown joke was good. OK drag up the ancient baseball cap thing, well done, sit down Harperson.
I'll take a Yorkshire Tory over a Sham Pain socialist any day.
Cable was pretty good for zaNuLiebore-lite. If that is true about HM the Queen, I think it's good she's more in touch than ministers.
I agree with you Mrs Dale.
With Nu Labour MPs starting to show public dissent towards Brown. Seeing Harmen perform far better at PMQs than he has ever done, will only add to the number of malcontents that want Brown gone L-O-N-G before the next election.
If Boris wins then Brown should get the Tea chests ready for shipping his chattels back to Bonnie scotland.
Harman was better than Brown - but was her usual hectoring-lecturing patronising and self-important self. She was a little insecure by the sound of her voice. It's too squeaky, shakey and makes me wince!
I am sure that Teresa May needs 'sisterly advice' from the old bag like a she needs a seive in the desert.
Her baseball quip was great though! Sure it was prepared before hand though!
Hague's quip about the stab vest and her constituents was not rehearsed, and shows he is one of the best orators in the house!
Hague won easily I am afraid Iain.
nicholas bennett
Agree with most of your post. Obviously she had been well briefed re the main likely questions, but she deteriorated badly after that. All it proved was that she too doesn't want to actually ANSWER any questions.
As well as the inflation rate gaffe, she told Angus Robertson MP that she would get Des Browne to write to him. Gee thanks--to get a letter from DB must be worth waiting for.
I'm looking forward to seeing her in a shell suit next time she visits Essex.
I reckon that after Boris wins in London and Labour gets creamed in the locals in May, Broon will pretend to be ill and will quit to spend more time with his bogies. He will not fight the next election.
I may have overestimated Cable, but I couldn't help wondering whether he put his question about lavish spending with the express intention of getting an intervention from the Speaker (rather than asking a more direct question about the Speaker's expenses). Either way, when the Speaker did intervene, I couldn't help thinking about lavish refurbishments and taxi bills.
Ian, with reference to your "Growler" article, "Roasted" also meant something different when I was at school.....
Still as you say later, lets not go there
I ought to dislike Harman because she represents everything I hate about New Labour but ....
she has good qualities, She's clever, a fighter, verbally dextrous and totally self confident. None of these apply to Gordon Brown. In truth I like her and loathe Gordon - can't help it but I agree with the consensus that Harriet is a real person. Gordon Brown is Artificial Intelligence - shame that his programmer forgot about the intelligence.
I don't think she did badly at all, not bad at all. It pains me to say it.
Hermione Fatperson won (just) because of the novelty and surprise value. The expectation was that she would make an utter arse of herself as soon as she spoke.
The fact that she didn't, albeit with the help of lines obviously prepared for her by someone else, took everyone by surprise. Thus she was able to squeak by before people noticed that the substantive content of her words was rubbish.
It was good fun but unlikely to work a second time.
Hauge has really gone off the boil. If you're beaten at PMQs by a intellectual non-entity like Harriet Freakn' Harman, it's time to retire.
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