By Sam Macrory - 5th April 2011
Louder. Angrier. Less patient. More, whisper it, Liberal Democrat? Nick Clegg’s half hour turn at deputy prime minister’s questions was his most impressive by far.
Ok, so the competition isn’t exactly testing. In fact, there is no competition at all. Clegg’s monthly sessions have embarrassingly established themselves as one of the most agonisingly awkward dates in the parliamentary calendar.
Today, however, Clegg was a little different. He was more arrogant, said Labour’s notoriously modest Chris Bryant. Perhaps, but at least that gave his backbenchers – who had turned out in force – something to cheer. You would never have guessed that a local election – and a referendum – was fast approaching.
The Liberal Democrats are tipped to suffer a battering in the former while the latter is hanging in the balance: this is not going to be a soothing Easter recess for the deputy prime minister. So he bowed out with a reminder that he is more than merely David Cameron’s coalition sidekick – he is the leader of the Liberal Democrats. Or the “current” leader, as Labour’s Sadiq Khan unhelpfully pointed out before welcoming Tim Farron – the party president and current front runner to succeed Clegg as leader – to his seat.
Farron held up an imaginary yellow card in an effort to stop Khan in his tracks but, as the speaker later noted, the “deputy prime minister is quite capable of looking after himself.”
And today, for the first time in a long time, that appeared to be true, though Clegg’s message to his wobbling party’s grass roots support was hardly subtle.
In an answer to Tony Baldry, a Tory MP whose appearance marks him out as only that, on the bill of human rights: “It’s no secret that the coalition doesn’t see eye to eye on this issue.”
Maybe, but for the first nine months of this coalition all eyes were apparently locked in the same direction. Is a coalition of open rows slowly establishing itself?
To a rambling question from Labour’s John Spellar on what Clegg would be up to the day after the local elections: “I can’t be bothered to answer that.”
Arrogant, yes, but his party colleagues cheered that one loudly. Being in government feels good, sometimes.
On Harriet Harman’s question on the abolishment of EMAs: “The honourable lady is jumping on the latest bandwagon without checking the facts.”
And Clegg’s defence of the EMA replacement had Farron nodding along in support. A tricky area, successfully negotiated? His MPs seem to think so.
And, most strongly, on Andrew Lansley’s health reforms: If GP commissioners were “not ready by April 2013", then they would not go ahead. This was news - and following a robust interview on the BBC this morning, Clegg now seems to be giving the impression that he is dictating health policy above the health secretary’s head.
Given Andrew Lansley’s backtracking statement yesterday, one assumes that Clegg’s free-wheeling on the issue comes with the prime ministers blessing.
On the merits of the Alternative Vote: “If you want more duck houses then vote No, if you want more accountability then vote Yes.”
This was a Lib Dem leader, with mostly Tory MPs behind him, criticising an ex-Conservative MP. Former colleagues of Peter Viggers - the owner of the infamous duck residence – looked on speechless, with only James Gray feeling capable of grunting his displeasure every time Clegg spoke against Conservative policy.
Will this notably more offensive performance help Clegg and his party in the local elections? No chance. Might it help the referendum on AV be won? That’s hard to judge, but at least Clegg – exiled from the Yes to AV campaign’s jamboree of promotional events – wasn’t afraid to shout down some of the arguments against.
Did it make his MPs a little happier? Given the notable pat on the back he received from Farron at the end of the session, the answer is probably yes.
Today’s performance was as close to being Leader of the Liberal Democrat Questions than any session we have seen since the general election. Is this a one week only departure from Clegg’s far less sure-footed displays? Well, being punchier is a far better place to be than being a punchbag.
And depending on the results of May’s elections, Nick Clegg could have no choice but to keep on taking the fight to his opponents – and sometimes coalition allies - before they turn on him.
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