An unusual session of Prime Minister's Questions today. We all expected it to be dominated by the economy, after another set of gloomy unemployment figures this morning and the Bank of England's warning that the economy could contract by 2 per cent next year. David Cameron began with a question about the tragic death of Baby P in Haringey, north London, and said he would turn to the economy in due course. But he never got there as he became embroiled in a spat with Gordon Brown about the death of the 17-month-old boy.
Cameron raised perfectly legitimate questions - not least, why Haringey Council's children's department appears to be investigating itself. But the exchange ended in a messy draw after Brown accused the Tory leader of playing politics. Cameron denied that, pointing out rightly that he had not mentioned the political control of Haringey Council (Labour). Brown ignored Cameron's repeated pleas to withdraw his charge. With hindsight, the Tory leader should probably have stuck to Plan A and devoted three of his six questions to the economy. His anger about the Baby P case is real, not synthetic, so he opted for Plan B on the spur of the moment. But Labour MPs, paraphrasing Margaret Thatcher, are already claiming he was too "frit" to talk about the economy.
I watched the exchange today, which i haven't for ages, and I was genuinely shocked by Gordon Brown's answers and the way he carried himself. I think too many commentators and politicians have got too focused on "playing the game" at Westminster and forgotten that real lives are effected. The person who I thought was the star was the speaker who showed a real understanding of the situation.
Posted by: Will | Wednesday, 12 November 2008 at 01:00 PM
If Labour MP's think what you say, it is very sad. Brown made a huge mistake and clearly is not worthy of the office he holds. This will do him real damage and deservedly so.
Posted by: Howard | Wednesday, 12 November 2008 at 01:12 PM
Cameron was out of control. He was more angry about his damaged pride and demanding an apology than anything else. Brown didn't handle it well, but Cameron was just cynically using this tragic issue to avoid talking about the economy where he and his party have been found lamentably wanting.
Posted by: Gil Hedley | Wednesday, 12 November 2008 at 02:38 PM
Cameron is showing his lack of substance on policy and playing political games. He clearly exploited the Haringey situation and he should be punished for it in the opinion polls
Posted by: max | Wednesday, 12 November 2008 at 02:53 PM
A "draw" for goodness sake, Andrew. Brown was a disgrace today and showed again just how inept he is when forced off his comfort zone of economics.
Posted by: Peter Buss | Wednesday, 12 November 2008 at 04:04 PM
Poor Dolly's troops are having to earn their dosh today!
Gordon Brown is simply unfit for purpose. No more boom and bust - his policies as Chancellor have brought this country to the biggest bust in living memory, with the cupboard bare through his spend spend spend, and he hides behind lies about the mountain of debt that he has created. If a limited company prepared accounts the way that Brown does, they would end up having the directors in jail for fraud.
Posted by: David Smith | Wednesday, 12 November 2008 at 06:02 PM
David - I wish, sounds good. Where do I sign up? Could do with the extra Christmas spending money, just for disagreeing with you in that way.
Cameron performed well but the main issue was his attempt to get out of questioning Brown on the economy, which betrays a lack of backbone and/or that he knows he would get a pasting for letting people down over taxation. Whether or not Brown has been doing his job well or badly, Cameron was nakedly trying to wriggle out of talking about the one thing that politicians can actually make a difference on. Brown was foolish to say he was wrong to make a "party political" point, but he had no direct responsibility for Baby P.
Posted by: Louise | Wednesday, 12 November 2008 at 07:08 PM
Take Gordon Brown away from his spin-driven economic mantra and he falls back on bombast,revealing his repulsive personality.
His PMQs performance on BabyP was sickening and heartless.
The baying mob behind him completed a shameful picture.
Posted by: jon dee | Wednesday, 12 November 2008 at 07:35 PM
It now transpires that the report WAS completed independently of Haringey's Childrens Department and not by the Director as Cameron claimed. So the whole basis of his question was false. He is either woefully ignorant and doesn't understand the procedures or he was playing politics.
That said I think Brown, although he did refer to the independent report arriving at the minister's desk this morning, should have shot Cameron down by being more specific.
Both of them didn't come out of thios smelling of roses.
Posted by: PeterH | Wednesday, 12 November 2008 at 08:56 PM
Clearly there are some comentators to this site who stoop so low as to leave their morals behind in the wake of screwed ideology. No matter your colours, Cameron was genuinely angry and asked proper questions. He failed to get a proper answer (and never does) and in riposte, received a spine jarring insight as to just how bankrupt of sensitivity, Brown is. To those who say that a discussion on the economy was lost. So what? Do you really think that it would have altered in any way, the horrors to come during the next few years?
Posted by: Peter Ellis | Thursday, 13 November 2008 at 10:30 AM