PMQs: A new year but no answers from Gordon Brown (06Jan10)

As per usual Gordon Brown is asked questions, and side-steps them, even asking his own questions. Gordon Brown has no answers to the questions put to him, except "wicked Tories" blah blah, "wicked LibDems" blah blah.

Recorded from BBC2's The Daily Politics showing of PMQs, 06 January 2010.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• pmqs
• prime
• ministers
• questions
• gordon
• brown
• new
• labour
• david
• cameron
• tory
• conservative

[dandoman01]

I know we all want a change in the government, but is David Cameron really the perfect replacement?

[liarpoliticians]

@dandoman01 Cameron is not perfect, but a change IS needed, New Labour have trashed the UK in all sorts of ways. We need someone that can get the UK back from where it is now, New Labour will just give more of the same UK hating (specifically English hating) medicine.

[midr06]

Brown acting like a cornered animal, using Campbell's and Mandelson's lines at every unlikely moment and asking CAMERON questions and ridiculing him for not answering them - yes, formidable.

[MichaelAntonian]

It is funny how genuine I find David Cameron to be. He really is the guy who wants the change and he is the guy who will do the change. Go Tory party!

[MrSDSTRIKEBREAKER]

@ramsayno9 Agreed. This is common sense. Unfortunately the criteria for being a politician requires that no common sense is present in the applicant. Any trace of it is detectable and candidates are automatically rejected if found to possess such a characteristic.

[MrSDSTRIKEBREAKER]

@ramsayno9 I don't feel being as nasty as possible is the answer either, I know we don't see eye to eye on this and had some exchanges last year but I think you should look at this with a more open mind. It's fair to say that the tories basically "inherited" this problem from Labour, they didn't create it in the short time they've been in power. Labour created the problem and the co/al is trying to sort it out, ok maybe we don't agree with the method, but something being done is better than nowt

[ramsayno9]

...what politicians should do is focus on creating decent, stable, secure jobs that pay a proper wage and give people a decent standard of living then people will feel less tempted to try to cheat the system.

[ramsayno9]

Under Labour, people had to hand in a doctor's note to prove that they were unfit to work. A lot of the stuff written about Labour being generous to "scroungers" is misleading. I am not saying that the system was perfect though. However I dont think the solution is to be as nasty as possible to people on benefits as if you take their money away from them, they could revert to crime to survive...

[MrSDSTRIKEBREAKER]

@ramsayno9 Ok so the testing system needs attention, granted. I'm sure there is some form of appeal process that any deemed fit to work that really aren't fit to work can mount. Mental health issues do not negate, in many cases, someone from doing some sort of job. There are companies who employ only those with disabilities (mental included) - I deal with such people on a semi-regular basis. There ARE solutions, the answer is NOT to hand out benefits for anyone who says "I don't feel well"

[ramsayno9]

@MrSDSTRIKEBREAKER well take some time out to look behind the headlines about people on disbalitly allowance being fit to work. The government pay a French business called Atos to do the tests. They are not given proper medical tests by a doctor. All that happens is that they check to see if people can do a few basic tasks then declare them fit to work. It is a farce! There a lot of people out there that may look physically OK but suffer from mental health issues which is often ignored.

[MrSDSTRIKEBREAKER]

@ramsayno9 I really can't see any sane person objecting to those who truly are dependant on welfare receiving it. I certainly don't object. But look at what we discovered just last week - 9 out of 10 people claiming "disability allowance" are actually fit to work, most of us know of someone who is "on the sick" that shouldn't be so I have no problem believing that figure. Don't you agree this needs to be tackled? It's your money that's paying for them too......

[ramsayno9]

I wasnt defending Labour. Im a big critic of a number of their policies. However after seeing the way the Tories behave towards people who depend on welfare particularly the disabled, students from working and middle class backgrounds who want to get on in life and public sector workers labelling their pensions "gold-plated" when in reality the average one is around £5,000 to £7,000 a year, while City fatcats get pensions worth £3,5,10million, I'm glad I didnt vote for those heartless scumbags!

[MrSDSTRIKEBREAKER]

@ramsayno9 Also - why are you bringing fuel prices into it? Your other post says "The Government does not set them, it is valued in dollars and goes up in price when there is higher global demand" - since you clearly can't make up your mind and have no idea what you're talking about, wouldn't it be best to just sit quietly and hope your beloved Labour party gets re-elected?

[MrSDSTRIKEBREAKER]

@carlberg34 Hip Hip! HOORAY!