Wednesday, May 06, 2009

PMQs: Your View

Sorry, been out all morning. So what was PMQs like then?

UPDATE 2.15pm: Just seen it. Brown very subdued, repetitive, almost forlorn. Had the demeanour of a man who knows the game is up. Cameron bouncy, aggressive, in Brown's face and bouyant. Interesting to note the lack of support for Brown on the backbenches, who were much quieter than usual, I thought. Clegg had another good day. Made Brown squirm.

Gordon Brown 5
David Cameron 8
Nick Clegg 8

60 comments:

subrosa said...

Sorry Iain didn't watch it. Was too busy venting my anger on a post about John Reid's latest gong.

http://tiny.cc/ior4L

Paul Halsall said...

Brown was cornered, but he whacked away Tory gibes. He looked like a humpback whale with 5 harpoons in, but still fighting back.

And he was right. The Tories raised no significant issues - there were all just trying to cast more harpoons.

What I want to see is Tories defending Michael Savage.

Bob said...

Full of labour plants. Clegg was on form again, Cameron wound Brown up and one Tory question seemed to send him more mental than normal.

He then lectured twice or three times about serious questions on policy, when some munter of an MP asked him to congratulate Brighton football team.

Gorbals seem to pick labour a couple of times too many.

Tony said...

Battle lines drawn - no quarter to be given. Clegg had good PMQ. Gordon uncomfortable. Cameron presidential.

Plato said...

I can't decide which was the best bit - Stephen Crabbe [Tory] asking about 'senior Whitehall boss' and bullying in the workplace or Nick Clegg 'PM only interested in saving his own skin'...

R5's Mr P giving Gordon a kicking - 'cornered','deeply personal attacks', 'no answer'.

Oh dear me.

Trend Shed said...

Gordon looked white as a sheet throughout the exchanges where Cameron attacked Brown's leadership.

As much as Brown deserves to answer for his appalling leadership, maybe he did have a point, that Cameron should have asked a question on policy as well.

Clegg seems to have discovered some bottle after the Gurkhas success and landed a blow.

The real star of the show was Tory MP Stephen Crabb who landed a haymaker on Brown about bullying in the workplace. Brown's response was hilariously dire and will no doubt be interpreted as 'admitting to bullying'.

Andy said...

Cameron v. Brown: Cameron went on Brown's leadership, Brown stuck to the old "You aren't asking about real issues" stuff. As Cameron remarked, Brown will have sounded good to the bunker, but not to many others. Brown did start to look like he had a point, however, when pretty much all of the Tory questions (except IDS) were about him, not issues.

Clegg v. Brown: Bizarre decision on Clegg's part not to go on Gurkhas, but a well asked question, I 'spose. A good slapping down for the Labour backbenches, along the way, too. Brown did his usual non-answers.

Rob said...

Tories highlighting Brown as a figure of derision on all sides of the house and calling for a GE plus theusual Labour Stooges asking planted questions. Clegg joining in with the Tories and calling Brown 'Stupid'. Even the Speaker couldn't bring himself to defend the indefensible. Highlight was the question about bullying in the workplace. It cut Brown deep and is just strengthening the narrative of him as a paranoid megalomaniac slowly losing control...which he is. I'm sure I saw a glimmer of glee in Johnson's eye. He must be praying for some other cabinet members to force the issue so he can claim the job.

Greggles said...

Absolute Rapeage.

Anonymous said...

Missed it - baby sitting.

But why bother - PMQs are over-rated. The important thing is that leaders do not embarrass their own side.

Wrinkled Weasel said...

I didn't watch either. I had to clean out the chicken house. While Brown was busy not answering questions I was shovelling shit.

There must be a profound analogy there but currently it escapes me.

This Observer said...

Worth watching, in fact, I'd recommend watching it as part of the daily politics, which had a couple of excellent pieces on today.

Gordon Brown came out looking really bad but the Conservatives didn't come out looking great either. There were lots of leadership jabs, an excellent question about flying phones constituting bullying in the workplace and one about the Gurkhas but other than that it was all a bit un-substantial from everybody except Nick Clegg, who annoyingly came out looking best.. again.

CommonSense said...

Cameron and Clegg did well - Brown was awful. I'm beginning to think that Clegg and Cameron made some kind of non-agression pact after the expenses meeting: http://tinyurl.com/cpyajs

Paul Burgin said...

Unpleasant is the one word that sums it up. Have just vented my spleen about some of it on my blog, so will leave it there for now!

yellowbelly said...

Waste of time, as usual. Brown evades answering anything, Cameron failed to hit the mark, Clegg showed some passion.

Brown stumped by a tory question about bullying in the workplace, accuses the tories of avoiding asking serious questions, and then answers a "placed" question by a labour stooge about Brighton & Hove Albion not getting relegated!

Unknown said...

Bit of a laugh actually.

All out attack on Broon and his leadership inability.

Could be a dangerous game because it is a case of playing the man not the ball, but I think that given the one-eyed, Scottish idiots unpopularity Cameron will get away with it just this once.

I thought the backbench question about projectiles thrown by a senior Whitehall figure was amusing and Brown took the bait hook, line and sinker. His anger was clear and simply made people believe that it was probably true.

Dead man walking.....surely this can't go on for another whole year? At least John Major had a strong economy to lean on in his final year.

Josh said...

The Tories well and truly took the piss out of Brown, and when a Tory MP made a point about Brown being a bully, Brown looked absolutely furious.

Constantly Furious said...

YawnSame ol' stuff: Cameron had a good go at Brown; Clegg had an even better go; Labour benches looked glum; we're all no better informed and a General Election's no nearer...

Anonymous said...

Brown refused to answer anything on the grounds that the Opposition were asking the wrong sort of questions. Some frighful woman called Barlow asked him a planted question, about Brighton and HOve Albion, I think, but no-oneunderstood what she was on about, though he answered it anyway.

Hazel Blears appeared with teh usual smile and Jacqui tried to look grave and important.

Clegg did quite well

Jackart said...

GB was a train-wreck, as usual!

sinosimon said...

another you tube moment for brown I think......the mixture of sheer nastiness and pettiness in his reply to the bullying in the work place question is classic........he really gets quite upset when people laugh at him doesn't he? Better get used to it Gordy, its the soundtrqack to your last year(if you make it through) in the office you disgrace.
.....
also have fun with Jacqui before she is dumped....http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/smithshame/

Anonymous said...

Well, according to Peter Hoskin on the Spectator's Coffee House blog;
"on this occasion, the PM came out on top."
www.spectator.co.uk/coffeehouse/3591441/pmqs-live-blog.thtml

Anonymous said...

Cameron did quite well. Interesting to note that even during the darkest Major days, the Conservative party were largely just hated and made a mockery of in this country.
Brown and Jacqui have managed to get Labour onto the front page of the Drudge Report and made a complete mockery of this country abroad through their incompetence.

Julian Ware-Lane said...

A waste of six questions by the Leader of the Opposition.

V said...

Attacks from all sides, every single Labour question was a plant. Brown whined about the Conservatives making an issue out of his leadership. Quips made about flying Nokias and the petition. All good fun.

Desperate Dan said...

Gordon has prepared a whole catalogue of non-answers - he kept reading out the list. He'd probably been up all night learning them off by heart. And he was mad as hell that no-one gave him the chance to regurgitate them.
I'd mark them Gordon Nil. Dave and Cleggy tied at 9.5

Lola said...

More tractor stats

Tory Teacake said...

Things were a bit rough for Gordon - both Cameron and Clegg attacked him and his leadership style. All the Tory questions were focused on the many blunders of the past week.

The best Gordon could come up with in reply to all of them is 'they could be asking about issues, but they are asking about this' - weak reply when, as Cameron pointed out, Brown's abomnible leadership is the issue!

Unknown said...

Nick Clegg was angry. You guys were very light on policy. Brown wasn't too bad considering the circumstances, apart from soundly very sinister when he replied to question about his behaviour by saying "Complaints will be dealt with in the usual manner".

Anonymous said...

GB more or less admitted that bullying takes place at no.10. Moreover, claiming that the opposition didn't ask any questions on policy is a bit rich given it's been two years since Brown took over and any policies that he does annouce, he overturns at the first sign of opposition. Tick-Tock...

Swiss Bob said...

I have PMQ's on Youtube, Clegg doin' Brown and Crabb hurling the Nokia here: The Daily Politics

Oscar Miller said...

Cameron seriously embarrassed the chipmunk and focussed on Brown being too weak to sack her. A point hardly anyone has picked up on. Win win for Cameron and Clegg - again.

Raedwald said...

I thought Brown sounded close to tears at times, but probably he just has a cold and is a bit bunged-up.

They all made him very cross and no doubt he whined all the way back to Downing Street that it wasn't fair - it was his turn and the other boys wouldn't play by the rules.

Anonymous said...

1.41PM

No one on coffee house agreed with Hoskins.

Obama has just wasted a vast amount of CO2 taking the entire White House press corps to a McDonalds or some such to show that unlike Kerry he can order a big mac.

Actually if his decisiveness in ordering fast food is typical of his other decision making then the free world is in trouble.

Oh and watching J Smith on ID Cards - the reasons she gives for it being a good idea are so miserable and thin as to be truly pathetic. I won't have to carry both my passport or drivers licence . Big deal.
Of course if stopped by the police I WILL need my drivers licence to prove I can drive and I will still need my insurance cert.
And I will need a passport to leave the country.

Apparently its all going to be run by your local chemist. Thats all right then.

Unsworth said...

Dialogue of the Deaf, as usual. I guess that Cameron and the Conservatives have finally given up on trying to get an answer which directly addresses any question they may put. Brown never answers questions, he merely spouts forth his own myopic view of the world.

It's clear too that he's bottling the General Election. Cameron asked him twice to call one - but Brown didn't even bother to comment. No doubt they're counting the days, now.

Lots of bollocks about why the Conservatives weren't asking about 'policy' - but why should they? His record to date on answering such questions is zero. And attacking the man is now de rigeur on all sides, it seems. Still, they took their time about getting to that position.

Actually it's a sound move. Brown has constantly placed himself in the limelight, elbowing his cabinet colleagues to one side as he preens and gestures, in a desperate attempt to appear statesmanlike and important. He's demanded public attention, so it's logical that the Conservatives would focus attention on him. Obviously he doesn't like it when they get at him, but the remedy is/was in his own hands. Trouble is he doesn't trust anyone at all.

There's definitely a fin de siecle feel to all of this. The Government knows it's in trouble and knows that it's heading for disaster at the polls. My guess is that they'll portray any result as being 'not as bad as expected' and attempt to salvage some credibility from that.

But the reality is that many Labour MPs are heading towards oblivion, and it's too late now to jettison the pilot. Each day which passes adds certainty to that fate. Morale must be pretty low - I do hope so.

M said...

Interesting that many are saying that the Tories didn't deal with the issues - they played the man, not the ball - but I rather think that the appalling mire in which the PM finds his leadership is the BIGGEST issue around.

With Brown fighting a tribal war to prop up his own ailing standing, the whole business of Government is being left to fester along on its own.

How much more of an issue could the tottering leadership of this inept man actually be?

Paul Halsall said...

Anonymous (or "rat" as I think of all anon comments),

So you think Drudge was operating in 1992-97?

[I repeat. If you won't sign a comment, you are a knave or a twerp.]

Trend Shed said...

I heartily recommend Swiss Bob's video of Stephen Crabb versus Gordon Brown.....


..... Brown's face is a picture. Even Michael Martin was having a chuckle.....(maybe he has had to duck a Nokia or two himself??)


http://www.the-daily-politics.com/2009/05/pmqs-may-6th-highlights-clegg-brown.html

golden_balls said...

I think cameron has got to be carful
labour are trying to accuse the tories of being lightweight on the major issues. Not one serious question out of six hmmmm.

I still think the country wants change and will vote for cameron but they will have to answer the serious questions at some stage.

Anonymous said...

Certainly not the most serious of PMQ's but when Brown won't answer any questions why not face up the "clown" issues

Brown even made it to You Tube already

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7dEDhcNs_c

Pam Nash said...

The 'Bullying' moment is sublime - Gordo looked thoroughly pissed off, definitely had a sense of humour failure. :)

Shamik Das said...

Missed it I'm afraid! Had one eye on work and one ear on the cricket!

Counting down the days till there's a new man answering Cameron at PMQs; Alan Johnson, your party needs you!

Anonymous said...

Cameron just a nasty public school bully; Brown defended quite well; Clegg mad not to go on the Gurkhas. Largely a waste of time.

Wyrdtimes said...

"any complaints are dealt with in the normal manner"

lol

He looked close to tears to me.

PIENOMICS said...

We learned that 30,000 school kids are getting help with reading, writing and counting.

Now only if,

1. The Broon stopped reading the Sunday Papers
2. Cabinet ministers stopped writing for the Sunday Papers
3. The Treasury and Home Office went on a "counting" course to freshen up their statistical skills.

Clegg and DC shafted the PM who looked like he would implode in response to the Nokia moment.

Doubting Richard said...

Paul Halsall

To imply that defending Michael Savage has any possible relevance to his banning from the country simply proves you are completely clueless about the issue. He does not need defending. The ban needs defending, although I cannot see how it could possibly be considered defensible in a liberal democracy.

Unless someone incites violence (i.e. advocates or calls for violence in a way likely to trigger it, directed at people likely to heed the incitement) then they should not be individually banned from the country for the views they express. This is the government choosing which views cannot be countenanced, and that is an element of dictatorship.

Even more shockingly, the news report I heard said only 22 people were on this list. Jacqui Smith then considers an American Conservative to be one of only 22 unacceptible orators outside the UK. Unless she just happens to have heard his show, and doesn't like his opinions, and feels her opinions justify silencing someone else's.

You might not agree with Mr Savage. David Cameron might not agree with him. That is no reason not to condemn his treatment.

Remember:

They came first for the communists, and I didn't speak up because I was not a communist ...

As for the lack of Drudge Report, the medium is irrelevant. Left wing US news media (and there were enough of them) did not humiliate Major.

mark said...

I think 5 points for Brown is rather generous. 2 at best. He looked and sounded like a broken man, who had trouble containing his inner rage at the audacity of Cameron questioning his leadership.

It was right to question his leadership. He is the Chairman of UK plc, and wholly unfit for purpose. The issues have all been debated recently with no new burning ones, so on balance, it was right to question the capability of a man who is supposed to be leading our country. We are the laughing stock of the world, with an unelected PM, who shows no ability for the job he was given without democratic vote.

And a job at that, which he was never even interviewed for. Corrupt at worst, arrogant at best.

Setting a wonderful example for us all in how to politicise your way to the top job, when you have little or no aptitude for its inherently difficult nature.

What an inspiration for the citizens of this country, NOT.

bnzss said...

Brown got a bit of a battering, didn't he? Cameron always, always has the upper hand simply because he's a hell of a lot sharper with the rhetoric and today was no exception... but Clegg, I think, managed to make a dig at policy (which Brown had been bleating about) AND leadership in a single question, and frankly hit Mr Brown for 6. Always nice to see.

Good fun.

Anonymous said...

The best moment for me comes in at just after 16 mins.

Classic stuff.

Posted as Anon as I am in a rush and can't be arsed to look up my login details. The BBQ beckons.

The Grim Reaper said...

The bullying question was absolutely hilarious. There need to be more attacks like this on Gordon Brown by Tories - more attacks on his defective character and personality.

Now let's see the Tories put forward some policies to win over the country. They do that and they're set.

Alex said...

The key point was not who looked good or who "won" the debate but the fact that Cameron was able to focus on Brown's competence or rather lack thereof.

Brown's retort that the Conservatives weren't focussing on the issues of the day fell flat (because the Opposition can ask any question they like about the government including the competence of the prime minister) and did not shift Cameron's attack.

Expect this theme to be picked up and repeated by the media. Oh it already has.

Johnny Norfolk said...

Brown went on about DC not asking serious questions. As Brown never answers them anywayn I think DC has given up and is just going for him. Quie right to.

Fragmeister said...

I would expect a question next week on the outcome of any disciplinary proceedings over the senior Whitehall manager who has allegedly thrown the odd mobile and upset the odd Epson.

Anonymous said...

Lesson for DC's chaps when in government is that the planted questions about footbal teams and local council's etc just fall as flat as a pancake - please avoid when the time comes!

Bullying questuion was spot-on and Brown's answer just made his position worse as it implied some level of guilt and a huge chip on shoulder.

jeremiah horrocks said...

This is how Chris Paul scored it:-

UPDATE 12:43 Scores on the Doors:

Brown 8 Clegg 6 Cameron 3
Labour back bench 8 (even McDonnell) Lib Dems 7 Tories 4 (two without IDS)
In. Sane.

He describes it as Gordon Brown's "best PMQs ever"; soon it'll be just Chris Paul and the Prime Mentalist in the bunker!!

Anonymous said...

Much though it pains me to say it; Cameron was bang on the money today. I wish Clegg could rattle his cage like Cameron did today....Clegg had more substance but time after time Brown uses Clegg's questions to reel off mindless stats....

Anonymous said...

chipmunk is toast

Dino Fancellu said...

PMQs video, if you haven’t seen it already, Dave really puts the boot in from the get go.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/8036138.stm

Anonymous said...

Waste of time. Cameron again attacked Broon and used all his "questions" to do it. Didn't really get any big hits in.

Clegg did well and gave the labour back-benchers a slap too.

Broon was given the chance just to repeat that the Tories don't want to talk about the issues.

Your score is too generous to Cameron, Ian, he needs to up his game.

(I seem to say the same thing after each PMQ's, but he's not listening)

No Society said...

Iain, as a neutral, and no apologist/defender of Brown i must have watched a different PMQ's than yourself. Mr. Cameron and all bar 2 televised Q's from the Conservative benches focused on playground personal attack, not party policy, with simple PM rebuttal. Clegg surprisingly didn't further the Gurkha affair leaving to IDS with a brief and very light discourse. I would say the episode was the lamest/vacuous exchange in my recent memory and certainly did not highlight Brown as a wounded man. What is needed and PDQ is the Election Machine to start revealing ways and means of a new Government. There is nothing remotely tangible presently.