A smart move by Ed Miliband today to put pressure on David Cameron over the televised leaders’ debates next year. Every time the Prime Minister is asked about these debates, he makes supportive noises while muttering about the ‘right formula’, but doesn’t commit to anything. He has also said that he felt the debates ‘dominated’ the coverage of the 2010 election, which is as close as he’ll come to saying that Nick Clegg’s shiny new qualities at the time rather detracted from Cameron’s own appeal which his strategists had been setting so much store by.
But as the Prime Minister hasn’t agreed to anything, Labour’s trying to get ahead of the game and appear to drag Cameron into a studio. In an article for the Radio Times, the Labour leader argues that negotiations on the debates should start now. He also sent Michael Dugher out to bat on the Today programme, where he put in an impressive performance.
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