The Chancellor's debate is an opportunity for Osborne

Kinglear

Osborne will be the Prime Minister after Cameron

Richard

The problem for Boy George is not his command of the figures or even his quick brain, it's that the public do not like him.
If he tries to bamboozle them with figures they will turn off.
Vince Cable is well liked respected and very credible with the public. If Boy George tries his normal tactic of playing the bullying toff he will lose.
Alistair Darling is also well liked by the public and regarded as one of the good guys from Labour. He is also well versed in the figures and does have a good presentation and delivery that the public like. So the oik as his friends call him has more than the argument to win he is already third is the popularity contest.
A big ask for him to win hearts and minds of the viewers and the money men in the city.
Unless he puts some meat on the bones of his policies he will seem very light especially after the chancellor has given his budget. My money is still on Cable for this one.

Alex

Are they not sending Ken Clark?

Not for Prophet

King Lear, no. He won't. His brother converted to islam rigged out in the full Arabian Nights monty. His brother's wife is an islamic.

We do not want anyone with a close family tie to islam in Downing St.

Man in a Shed

The problem will how to deal with the usual Lib Dem pitch which is always happiest attacking the Tories - especially with Red Vince.

Its a two against one line up.

A lot of the public believe what the BBC has deliberately lead them to believe about St Vince Cable, it will be a sticky wicket for George. He'd better know his facts inside out and hope to show up the edges of Vince cable's competence.

Moriarty

I am a recovering alcoholic. The least shock could be a tipping point. Richard has posted a series of points with which I can agree.....help

TrevorsDen

Moriarty .... Huh? Richard has yet again posted a long load of drivel - heavy on insult and ignorance. Short on reason.

stephen

I agree pity the Tories are not using Ken.
Probably does not matter too much as the audience for C4 is hardly the socioeconomic group of DE's and relocated junior civil servants in the North of England, that the FT mentioned today as being a hard nut for the Tories to crack. With any luck Osborne will give St Vince a run for his money; he is a Labour fellow traveller IMHO and needs exposing as this.

Nick

Moriaty & Richard, you evidently didn't read the article. james made it quite clear that Osborne would be turning up to this debate as the underdog. Thus, he has nothing to lose and everything to gain.

The vulnerable figure is Cable who has been given a free pass from the media to pass himself off as an independent observer of the economic scene. He's very good at explaining what has already happened but his record on suggesting policies to deal with the crisis are vulnerable. He seems to want to go further than Darling in cuts but his timing is always "not quite yet".

Darling will be easy to counter. Osborne will just need to portray Darling as relatively sensible, and taking Treasury advice, but constantly being over-ruled by Brown and Balls. Darling doesn't like telling deliberate untruths so won't contradict this, merely say "I've had robust conversations with Gordon and Ed". The inference will be clear to all.

Wight Tory

Ken - Kenny boy is taking on the prince of darkness at a BCC event @12:45 which I believe is being streamed live...

Athesius the Facilitator

Richard- Again I am shocked because you have talked a bit of sense for a second time.

However I think you should get hold of some Cable transcripts. He actually spends a lot of time talking and not a lot saying anything.

While being interviewed by Marr last week I had to laugh when he said in all sincerity " I do not want to put detail on our proposals at this moment in time" and then proceeded to slag the Tory's off for not putting any detail on there proposals.

Richard he's just a "lower deck lawyer", find someone else to love.

Boudicca

Osborne would do himself a few favours if he didn't look quite so sulky all the time. When he is speaking he has quite a pleasant demeanour, but the rest of the time he slumps in his chair and looks like a miserable teenager who is being forced to do something he doesn't want to do.

General Zod

but, Richard, Brown and Balls will immediately sack Darling if they win the election, as they were too weak to do in the summer.

Dorothy Wilson

Richard: You obviously haven't caught up with the poll of City types that showed a preference for Osbourne over Darling.

Richard

@Dorothy
It's not the city that will decide the election though is it?
Ask any homeless person if they prefer caviar or fish cakes and the answer is meaningless to the rest of the country...so who cares what hedgefund managers say they are a very narrow interest group. Osborne has to appeal to a much wider audience.

JONNY

Osborne has a problem (a big one at that).
But it's a problem of presentation. Of likeability. He must find his own way round that one.
But behind all that I suspect he's brighter, sharper and more energetic than the other twain. As well as being younger.
Typical of Richard to fall headlong with gooey eyes into the Elephant Trap of uncritical Cable Worship.
He really must learn this greener-than-grass laddy not to be so bleeding credulous.

Dorothy Wilson

Richard: but you wrote: "A big ask for him to win hearts and minds of the viewers and the money men in the city." So it seems Osbourne is already in the lead on one part of that.

And does he try to win popularity with the viewing public by concealing the truth [ie Darling & Labour] or by trying to be straight with the voters [ie Osbourne & the Conservatives]?

TGF UKIP

Nice try, James, but I'm not sure that Osborne hasn't got a no win situation here. His biggest handicap is the public view of him as someone not likeable and lightweight, so if he scores points off either or both Darling and Cable he reinforces the view of a nasty little point scorer and equally if he lets them score points off him he comes across as lightweight and not up to it. His only salvation would be if the Tories really did have a serious and credible economic policy and plan, which demonstrably they don't.

Both he and Dave are also going to find the tables turned very quickly on them if they choose to bang on about Brown's reckless spending. As was always bound to be the case their stupid and equally reckless spending guarantees will be flung back to bite them in the arse with a vengeance.