Question Time: open thread
Written by Alix Mortimer on 25th September 2008 – 10:25 pmBBC1, 10.35pm
David Dimbleby is in Manchester tonight, asking the questions of Our Glorious Vince Cable with supporting cast of political midgets. Oh, all right, Community Sec’y of State Hazel Blears, Shadow Commons leader Theresa May, general secretary of Unite Derek Simpson and Spectator political editor Fraser Nelson.
Dunno about the audience’s questions (do they matter in this weekly battle of the egos?), but we can expect DD’s focus to be on who said what about who in the bar at the Tory and Labour conferences, and those yawning - or is it narrowing? - gaps in the polls. Simpson will be the key used to crank open this particular can of sardines, I think. A Labour man, he dismissed David Milliband as “smug and arrogant” when speculation over the Prime Minister’s position was at its height, er, a week and a half ago, and declared that we might just as well get Cameron in since his policies were so similar. A very public disillusioned lefty.
My prediction: our Vince will rise serenely above all this nausea. As ever, feel free to sound off in the comments thread.
BBC1, 10.35pm.
Posted in News
25th September 2008 at 10:37 pm
First! Anyone else around?
25th September 2008 at 10:39 pm
We’re listening to Hazel and Vince.,..
25th September 2008 at 10:40 pm
Frighteningly obedient applause, seemingly just for the use of the word “greedy”.
25th September 2008 at 10:40 pm
But my partner is watching the official Hazel Blears fan video on youtube
25th September 2008 at 10:42 pm
Vince, a giant, to coin a phrase, ‘Standing on the Shoulders of Midgets’.
25th September 2008 at 10:46 pm
Vince sounds authoritative as usual
25th September 2008 at 10:49 pm
What I found astonishing in those opening comments was that when DD turned to Blears to fire Vince’s comments at her, she didn’t even try to say Vince was wrong, she just tried to pick the more comforting parts out of what he had said. That is the real measure of the cross-party respect in which Vince is held.
25th September 2008 at 10:55 pm
“… supporting cast of political midgets. Oh, all right, Community Sec’y of State Hazel Blears …”
Oh dear. The “50-inch” tag has really stuck, hasn’t it?
http://heady.co.uk/rm/hazel_blears_harriet_harman.jpg
25th September 2008 at 10:58 pm
Alix’s prediction has so far been prescient: Vince has indeed risen above that little May-Blears spat, with a look of faint disapproval on his face.
25th September 2008 at 11:00 pm
There’s a perfectly reasonable line that Hazel could take over the credit crunch . . . which would be to point out the numerous was in which the Bush administration have f***ed us over during the course of the last eight years. Sadly, this option is not available due to our continued craven subservience to the US.
25th September 2008 at 11:02 pm
. . . of course everything would be just fine if Sentamu and the the bearded idiot were in charge . . .
25th September 2008 at 11:03 pm
[I meant ways not was]
25th September 2008 at 11:05 pm
Hi Laurence! Mention of the archbishops woke you up?
25th September 2008 at 11:08 pm
This business about Ruth Kelly is really very straightforward. It’s all to do with the embryology bill which she can’t support because she’s a mad Catholic. That’s it. If the third reading had been held in the last session, as it should have been, Kelly would already have resigned.
25th September 2008 at 11:10 pm
Ha yes! I’ve just been watching the film The Pianist on DVD. Watching QT is a pretty dreadful sequel!
25th September 2008 at 11:11 pm
Has the bill not been passed for 3rd reading yet? Didn’t know that. You could be onto something there.
25th September 2008 at 11:11 pm
How was the Pianist?
25th September 2008 at 11:14 pm
Yes, it was postponed so as not to upset the Catholics of Glasgow East. But it should be coming up soon. To be fair, the press have mentioned the HFEA bill in connection with Kelly, but they just don’t seem to get how central this is to the Opus Dei member.
The Pianist is a totally brilliant film. More gruesome than I was expecting, but unmissable.
25th September 2008 at 11:17 pm
Hazel Blears - ugh. How can anyone take this woman seriously.
25th September 2008 at 11:19 pm
To be honest, I’
25th September 2008 at 11:20 pm
Have you just been murdered?
25th September 2008 at 11:22 pm
Oops. I’ll start again:
To be honest, I’m warming to Hazel Blears. Obviously I don’t agree with much she says, but she seems to have endless energy to go out and slag off Tories, when half her colleagues seem to have given up or turned their fire on their colleagues, and she comes across as genuine.
Still, awful centralising statist hag etc.
25th September 2008 at 11:23 pm
Thankfully no, just having a senior moment with my keyboard.
25th September 2008 at 11:24 pm
There are people who see Hazel as a future Labour leader…
25th September 2008 at 11:27 pm
Steady on, not sure I’d go that far…
25th September 2008 at 11:29 pm
Not me,,,
25th September 2008 at 11:30 pm
Nice to see the audience so worked up about ID cards. About a dozen speaking against, and just one in favour.
25th September 2008 at 11:31 pm
Because his wife is a grown woman who can make her own decisions. Next?
25th September 2008 at 11:33 pm
There was this article in The Express recently on Blears, which I guess just goes to show how desperate journalists can get sometimes.
25th September 2008 at 11:37 pm
Oh God, Farage is on next week. *hits head against wall*
25th September 2008 at 11:40 pm
Laurence, what have you been doing fishing around the Express site? Go for the full-fat Mail, mate.
Meanwhile, over to Andrew Neil and chums. With the buildup Neil was giving to this $700bn bail-out earlier (on the Daily Politics), I’m frightened to go to bed before they pass it, in case the world ends tomorrow.
25th September 2008 at 11:42 pm
There’s a perfectly rational explanation Andy. I had a haircut the other day. I was last in the queue behind about half a dozen people. Eventually I was forced to read the Express.
25th September 2008 at 11:45 pm
Ouch! Traumatic.
25th September 2008 at 11:46 pm
Great comment on QT extra:
“The Archbishops know nothing about finance, so stick to prayer because we’re going to need it.”
25th September 2008 at 11:47 pm
Laurence might be onto something there with his explanation of the Ruth Kelly resignation
26th September 2008 at 2:30 pm
There were (past tense) quite a number of catholics in Hazel’s Lanky Lunatics. Past tense because plotting is on hold.
28th September 2008 at 2:10 am
Great performance by Vince Cable. True leadership on how to deal with the global financial crisis. Not a word about silly, irrelevant, unconvincing tax cut gimmickry. Let’s hope this continues.
Gordon Brown is quite right, of course. Now is not the time for a novice. (Nor, of course, is it sensible to trust the man who led us into this hole with the job of digging us out again!)
Gordon’s comment was clearly aimed at the Davids Miliband and Cameron. But, shouldn’t we also sit up and take notice?