Brown Says No To Televised Face Off.

Wat Tyler Thu Feb 28, 2008 at 07:55:30 PM GMT Print-friendly version Facebook

Gordon Brown has ruled out the possibility of his taking part in a US style televised debate with David Cameron and Nick Clegg in the run up to the next General Election.



 

 

 

The issue was raised again by the leader of the opposition during Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, who cited it as a possible solution to the growing public disaffection with Westminster.

 

The first response that springs to mind is ‘well he would say that wouldn’t he’, Cameron, like William Hague before him, has learnt that a handful of showy, though lacking in real substance, performances at the dispatch box do not translate into much of an advantage in the polls.

 

Equally predictable was the Prime Minister’s response, Gordon Brown reminded Mr Cameron of his promise to bring an end to ‘Punch and Judy politics’ and to re-establish the ‘primacy of parliament’, both of which laudable aims he suggested would be undermined by a televised debate.

 

Valid points, or rather valid ways of scoring a few points in the commons chamber, but in setting his face so determinedly against a televised debate Brown may just be missing a trick.

 

To make it work properly any televised debate between the party leaders would need a firm referee in place (I hear Jeremy Paxman is looking for a new challenge) to keep the focus on policy rather that personal sniping, something that has rather soured the recent debates between Hillary Clinton and Barrack Obama on the other side of the pond in the run up to the next round of primaries.

 

It would also require a genuine willingness on the part of all three party leaders to step out of their comfort zone, no scripted questions from back benchers hoping to crawl their way to the top; throw the lines open and let the public put them on the spot.

 

Televised debates are by no means a magic bullet designed to revive public interest in the political process, but anything that has the potential to shake up the cosy, inward looking world within the Westminster bubble must be worth giving a try.



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Brown Says No To Televised Face Off. | 3 comments (3 topical)

Re: Brown Says No To Televised Face Off. (#1)

by Al on Fri Feb 29, 2008 at 08:59:03 AM GMT

I can't say I'm that bothered for a televised debate, it seems one of those things that the opposition will call for and the government will reject. The Lib Dems will always support it because it gives them some media time.

I read an article about it a while ago where the commentator felt that far from promote democracy it would actually cheapen it as he imagined the journalists commenting on it to such a worthless degree - what socks are they wearing, what facial expressions did they have etc etc - that it would cheapen the whole thing.

I kinda go along with that view. If there was one I'd watch it but in these situations, is the Prime Minister (whoever it is) ever going to come out on top? The nature of it would have an advantage for opposition parties I reckon. 


Re: Brown Says No To Televised Face Off. (#2)

by matt1986 on Mon Mar 03, 2008 at 11:40:02 AM GMT

I'd love to see televised debates between the party leaders.
To be fair, the incumbent PM has a massive advantage when it comes to elections at the moment - think, for example, of the power to decide when the election is going to be held - so if it did give opposition politicians a slight advantage, it wouldn't matter that much. And it might give the PM the chance to attack opposition politicians' policies/opinions. During PMQs, the PM can't question his/her opponents on their own policy stances in great detail. If a PM tries to, an opposition leader can just protest that it is he/she who is supposed to be asking the questions, not the other way around.


[ Parent ]

Re: Brown Says No To Televised Face Off. (#3)

by TonyH on Tue Mar 04, 2008 at 05:00:59 PM GMT

Politics on TV should predominantly be debates between leaders and senior party officials.
Filtered through media hacks, we seem to be fed spin and counter-spin rather than argument and counter argument.

There are leaders’ debates in Ireland. It’s brilliant and very informative to see the leaders in a proper discussion. And it is a proper discussion. If you’re inclined and have an hour – watch here: (it’s the second link at the bottom).

Last year’s was brilliant – they had an opening statement each and then got to it for an hour. Anyone watching learned a great deal about differences on plans, finance, approach to government and communication ability.

Properly done, it would be a very useful step forward to see prime time TV debates in the UK. A couple of hours every four or five years is not much to ask of someone who wishes to lead a party and a country. Cameron v Davis was an interesting exercise - they both had, at least, the courage to go for it.

I’m disappointed with Brown’s reaction. He’s asked to give an account of himself and refuses. He’s supposed to be the man of substance and reacts with an accusation. He’s supposed to have courage and conviction and won’t face someone he calls a lightweight (in part) in fear of his superior articulation.

He says he wants to reach out to disaffected voters and yet here is an opportunity to give an account of himself directly to a massive audience and he won’t. I can’t believe he’d rather grimace haplessly in a Youtube tribute to Countdown or the Chinese New Year where you can almost see the PR person prodding him to smile.

I believe he is a man of substance but I wish to God he’d display it rather than talk about it.


Brown Says No To Televised Face Off. | 3 comments (3 topical)