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PMQs - The Verdict
Edward Davie
As London experienced its hottest day in 1,000 years (alright, probably a slight exaggeration) the political temperature in the chamber was also rising.
Prime minister's questions were preceded by John Prescott's monthly grilling by MPs. There is never much love lost between the Tories and deputy prime minister, and these sessions have turned into naked, old-fashioned class war with Prezza snarling bear-like at the ranks of public schoolboys who have come to bait him.
After the warm-up show the main event got underway and was thankfully a lot livelier than recent weeks.
The Tory attack on the deputy prime minister continued with David Cameron opening his account by questioning why one of Prescott's policies, in the form of home information packs, was being ditched.
The Tory leader followed up Blair's waffley answer and said: "I think the prime minister better mug-up on this because after all he is going to moving house soon."
Cameron added: "If the prime minister is so worried about people wasting money when they move house then he should of stopped the chancellor clobbering everybody with extra stamp duty". It wasn't a bad line despite sounding pretty contrived.
There was then an exchange of policies that both leaders had apparently reneged on.
Blair got the better of Cameron, reminding him that his British bill of rights had been described by Ken Clarke as a "nonsense"; English votes for English MPs had been described as a "constitutional abortion" by a Sir Malcolm Rifkind; 'hug a hoodie' crime policies had disappeared from view; and finally his policy to leave the EPP group in the European parliament has been kicked into the long grass of 2009.
On the latter point Blair had his own moment of embarrassment when a Labour backbencher fed him some more ammunition on the Tories European difficulties.
Blair actually could not bring himself to say Party of European Socialists and could only manage "we will not leave our centre-left group", to the joy of the Tories.
And Cameron hit back on Blair's usual avoidance of questions, saying: "These sessions are about the prime minister answering questions on behalf of the government. I know he doesn't like being interrogated but with the way things are going at Scotland Yard he better get used to it."
He over-egged the pudding by adding: "For the benefit of the tape I am interviewing the prime minister."
Blair then tried to talk about Cameron's policy on nuclear power but was pulled up by the Speaker who had already allowed Blair to get away with a long list of Tory inequities.
Next up was Sir Menzies Campbell who once again used his valuable questions to ask about foreign policy.
To be fair what is happening in the Lebanon is a very big story, but I actually cannot remember the last time the Lib Dem leader asked anything beyond his former brief.
His delivery has improved since he stopped asking about domestic policy where he clearly felt uncomfortable, but it is hardly a sustainable position.
When the Lib Dem chief said that the PM should urge both sides to call a ceasefire Blair got a laugh for reminding him that "our influence with Hizbollah is somewhat limited".
Later, Labour's Michael Meacher stumbled his way through an incredibly long question on the Middle East before being cut short by the Speaker.
We were reminded that recess is in touching distance when two Tory backbenchers asked the prime minister about his holiday plans.
Robert Goodwill suggested Blair holiday in his constituency as "many people [who] visit Scarborough as a tourist subsequently decide to make it their permanent retirement home".
It was a request Blair declined to give a positive answer to, but it is safe to assume that he will not be giving up a couple of weeks on a tropical island somewhere for the more modest pleasures of a deckchair on the Yorkshire Riviera.
The Verdict
Tony Blair - 7/10 - Managed to deal with Cameron reasonably well and his backbenches seem better disciplined.
David Cameron - 7/10 - For a man who rejected 'Punch and Judy politics' he is actually pretty good at it.
Sir Menzies Campbell - 6/10 - Must spend the summer learning about domestic policy.
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Published: Wed, 19 Jul 2006 14:20:24 GMT+01
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