Nick got the Paxman treatment last night. For some reason, it is no longer possible to embed Newsnight (cheeky, I know) so we can bring you only ye link.
A good, strong, calm performance on the whole – never wise to try and outPax the Paxman. Another success in clearly separating our pre-existing tax package from the new commitment. I know we’re a little het-up on the subject at the moment, but it wouldn’t hurt to observe that this distinction really has become clear in the press as a result of this year’s conference. Only 24 months on from the idea being mooted, the press now realise we plan to cut the basic rate of income tax. No flies on you guys.
Nick’s only wobble was in listing some of, but not all of, the redirected spending that will make up our £20bn (3%) cut in current government spending, for the very good reason that it would be impossible to have worked out reliably in 2008 which £20bn you could reasonably expect to save in 2010.
But then, as others have observed, this is the problem with setting a target figure, however wisely and worthily, and then publicising it. Either the press will demand to know why you can’t give them chapter and verse on how you intend to meet it, or, if you satisfy that demand, they’ll treat any subsequent modification as a u-turn.
However, I will kindly and optimistically continue to assume that the communications bods know what they’re doing because informal reports coming at me from various bods back home are that the Make it Happen media coverage is on the whole very positive.
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On the plus side, he probably knows how to spell “know”.
The Telegraph reports an egregious blunder by Nick Clegg, who apparently thought pensioners were surviving on £130 a month!
Asked by a caller to a local news television programme whether he knew how much state pensioners received, he tried to dodge the question, before finally mumbling: “I think it’s about £30 quid now, isn’t it?”
In fact, the basic pension is £90.70 a week for a single person and £145.45 for a couple, with more available for those claiming tax credits.
I must say that in retrospect it seems harsh that Charles Kennedy was condemned for a single episode of confusion about tax policy in a press conference. It seems that every other time Nick Clegg opens his mouth, something bizarre pops out.