PMQs Live Blog
Peter Hoskin 12:00pm
Stay tuned for live coverage from 1200.
1159: Still waiting for the main event. You can watch it here, by the way.
1203: And we're off. Brown starts by paying tribute to British troops in Afghanistan, as well as aid workers killed in Kabul
1204: First question from Stephen Hepburn on whether pleural plaque victims will get compensation.
1205: Here's Cameron now. As expected, he leads on Brown's embarrassing U-turn of TA cuts; an issue the Tories have been pushing for the past couple of weeks. Cameron asks hopw Brown could have thought about cutting training during wartime.
1206: Strange. Brown responds by repeating his condolences - it's basically a carbon copy of his opening statement. Seems like he's using it to defuse Cameron's point.
1207: Brown's response is that he's taken another look at the numbers and decided that ... yada, yada, yada.
1208: Cameron's going for the jugular, saying that the Opposition forced the government's hand. "Why does this Prime Minister get everything wrong."
1209: Brown hits back, saying that the Tories have the "wrong policies" for the recession. Erm, I think that's rather set Cameron up...
1210: And, yes, Cameron brings up the fact that we're still in recession. He deploys one of his favourite PMQs questions: "Will the PM confirm that he was wrong to say 'no more boom and bust'"
1211: This is fertile territory for Cameron. He's now quoting Brown saying that "we're leading the world out of recession"; that "we're coming out of recession" etc.
1212: Brown's continuing with the "Tories got it wrong theme". He's actually on unusually fiery form, but it won't play well against the backdrop of continued recession. Cameron has the upperhand on this topic.
1213: Brown: "They were wrong on the VAT cut, wrong on ... wrong ... wrong ... wrong." The Labour benches are cheering loudly, but I suspect this will come across as arrogant in the face of the GDP figures.
1214: Erm, I don't think Brown meant to say this: "[The Tories] have no ideas for getting us out of growth." I should hope not.
1216: Here's Clegg, and he leads on climate change, asking how Brown would characterise Labour's record on this. Brown responds with claims about what will be achieved in Copnehagen.
1217: Brown says that Brown's record on climate change is rubbish. The attack isn't quite hitting home.
1219: Question on 200,000 grandparents who look after their grandchildren.
1220: On Afghanistan, Brown says that a long-term aim is to "split the Taliban ideologues from the rest". Overall goal is to boost Afghanistan's military and police capacity, so that British troop numbers can be reduced.
1221: Bob Spink asks Brown to "continue his honourable support of the Gurkhas" by looking at their pension rights. Brown says he will give it some attentions. Pays tribute to the Royal British Legion.
1223: Daniel Kawczynski asks why Brown is leaving it to the Scottish to deal with inquiries into the Lockerbie bombing. Brown stresses that al-Megrahi is still regarded as a "terrorist" in the law's eyes.
1224: Planted question from Chris Ruane on the Tories' grouping in the European Parliament. Allows Brown to expound about "out of touch" Tories.
1225: Cheeky question on an EU President. Brown says that if Lisbon goes through, and if Blair puts himself forward for the role, "we will support him".
1226: Tom Watson says that consumers are being ripped off by phone companies and their hidden charges. Brown says that OFCOM is investigating.
1228: Questions on the climate change talks in Copenhagen.
1230: First mention of expenses. Stuart Bell asks what the "next steps" are, once the Kelly Review is released. Brown says that it will be "a matter for the House" to implement it - presumably referring to the vote that MPs will have on the proposals.
1231: After another question on climate change, Brown tries to caricature the Tories' views: "they're against wind turbines ... they're against nuclear power". And so on.
1233: And that's it. Verdict shortly.
VERDICT: A PMQs to demonstrate just how disastrous the prolonged recession is for Brown. To be honest, the PM was in punchier form than usual today, while Cameron put in an effective performance without quite soaring. But it didn't matter: the simple fact that we're still in a downturn undermined everything that Brown said, and made him seem equal parts arrogant and complacent. It's almost getting to the point where Cameron needn't turn up. Brown is getting defeated by circumstances; the rhetoric is superfluous.
Previous
NH1
October 28th, 2009 12:11pm Report this commentEnough Said: http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/jameskirkup/5816867/Alistair_Darling_the_recession_ends_in_219_days_/
Nick
October 28th, 2009 12:14pm Report this commentJack Straw, Harriet Harman and George Osborne (plus many others) appear not to be wearing poppies.
Frank P
October 28th, 2009 12:15pm Report this commentNeather a word about the most important topic of this year and probably the decade. Cowards all!
Andy
October 28th, 2009 12:16pm Report this commentBrown is an utter disgrace and needs to go. Now.
David Lindsay
October 28th, 2009 12:34pm Report this comment"Not even fit to be the Opposition" - direct hit.
Philip Walker
October 28th, 2009 12:40pm Report this commentCome on Nick, it's not November yet. Next thing, you'll be telling me you've put your Christmas tree up already.
Austin Barry
October 28th, 2009 12:40pm Report this commentI rather suspect that if the UK were invaded by Islamist hordes during PMQs the PM and Cameron would continue to exchange Sixth Form debating points about Boom and Bust etc. etc. These characters realy should get out more and feel the increasingly palpable anger and resentment.
DavidDP
October 28th, 2009 12:42pm Report this comment"Jack Straw, Harriet Harman and George Osborne (plus many others) appear not to be wearing poppies."
One normally doesn't until November.
Andrew Savage
October 28th, 2009 12:45pm Report this commentThere shouldn't be a 'requirement' to wear a poppy until November 1st. Wearing one before then is garish and unnecessary. These days it seems to be a race to wear a poppy first, rather than wearing one simpyl out of respect for our fallen.
cityboozer
October 28th, 2009 12:49pm Report this commentNobody else notice the chippy Labour MP refer to Brown as our Head of State?
Fergus Pickering
October 28th, 2009 12:55pm Report this commentYou don't wear a poppy until November 1st - unless you are a know-nothing luvvie that is. Had it from a general.
JohnG
October 28th, 2009 12:59pm Report this commentSo, no mention of the Labour government's covert policy of mass immigration to impose multi-culturalism by stealth and "rub the right's nose in it"?
Perhaps Cameron and Clegg want this scandal to quietly go away just as Labour obviously do?
But, do they really want the BNP and UKIP to capitalise on this in next years election?
Liz Brown
October 28th, 2009 1:10pm Report this commentI didn't think that Liebour cheers were all that wholehearted - Bliar would have had them cheering to the rafters - and since when has the Royal British Legion been the Royal British NATIONAL Legion? You missed that bit...........
Jez
October 28th, 2009 1:27pm Report this commentWhere was mention of the Neather admission?
Careerist sell-out w*nkers, the absolute lot of them.
Scandalous.
greenslime3
October 28th, 2009 1:39pm Report this commentStraw not wearing a poppy is a family tradition
Vulture
October 28th, 2009 1:41pm Report this commentGood job the report on the Chinook crash in Afghanistan which directly blames Govt shortfalls in spending for the deaths of 14 servicemen - our greatest single loss since the Falkklands - came out just after this PMQs. Coming on top of the TA U-turn it proves yet again that whoever's side the Govt is on - it is certainly not Britain's, or the nation's fighting men and women.
Can nothing be done to rid us of this gang of criminal filth?
Frank P
October 28th, 2009 1:51pm Report this commentCity Boozer
Yes! Now I have to have the hole in my roof repaired.
Peter From Maidstone
October 28th, 2009 1:59pm Report this commentI would be interested in the opinions of posters here as to whether the performance of GB or DC at PMQs has any relevance to anything very much at all. Is it just me or is it just a pointless waste of time that achieves nothing and is designed to achieve nothing?
Frank P
October 28th, 2009 2:20pm Report this commentPFM on PMQ - spot on, mate!
David Lindsay
October 28th, 2009 2:20pm Report this commentThis time last year, one of my local pubs not only had a Santa up, but had put a poppy in his lapel.
Anne Wotana Kaye
October 28th, 2009 2:22pm Report this commentFirst, sympathies to the families and friends of those who died in the Nimrod. Secondly, after watching the Breaking News on this tragic incident, it was revealed, what was always suspected that Procurement Services concentrated on budget more than anything else. I would suggest that there are also more sinister reasons, but without proof it would only be libellous to state them. However, I believe that in most democratic countries, after such an event the government if it didn't do it voluntarily, would be compelled to resign. If, this government announced they were stopping benefits completely for those long-term unemployed who make no effort to accept work. I think the streets would be filled with demonstrations. The deaths of innocent servicemen will pass with simply platitudes.
Anne Wotana Kaye
October 28th, 2009 2:29pm Report this commentGreensline3
Straw not wearing a poppy is a family tradition
I thought a white feather was the family's heraldic symbol.
Chris
October 28th, 2009 2:40pm Report this comment>Brown says that Brown's record on climate change is rubbish. The attack isn't quite hitting home.
Eh?
Verity
October 28th, 2009 3:19pm Report this commentAnne Wotana Kaye - White feather. Ha ha ha ha ha ha!
TrevorsDen
October 28th, 2009 8:48pm Report this commentit was a nimrod crash not chinook.
The circumstances surrounding this crash are appalling. We need to concentrate spending on forces which are on active service not on vanity projects like aircraft carriers and flashy toy jets.
There will be no vote on expenses report. MPs voted to abolish their right to vote on that earlier in year. it will be reviewed by a committee I understand. I hear they are really miffed about that.
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