Coffee House The Spectator Blog
PMQs sketch: ‘What a penetrating insight into the affairs of state’
A mood of giggles and mischief descended on PMQs today. David Cameron is in America – attempting to cure insomniacs by explaining Tory Euro-scepticism to them – and his role… Continue reading
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Nick Clegg and Harriet Harman play a cautious game at PMQs
There was a rare moment of unity between the Tory awkward squad and the Whips at PMQs today. The awkward squad relished brandishing copies of a Liberal Democrat leaflet promising… Continue reading
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PMQs sketch: Miliband’s NHS torment
Back to business at PMQs. Our ailing NHS, and its many-headed crises, were today’s key battle-ground. We hear of sick people being parked in ever tinier and more humiliating confinements:… Continue reading
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Today’s PMQs fails to interrupt the mini-Tory revival
There has been a distinct shortage of PMQs recently and after today, there’s only one more until June. This will add to Ed Miliband’s disappointment that he didn’t shift the… Continue reading
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PMQs sketch: Everyone talks about nothing, while no-one listens
Let’s have a breather. It seemed like a truce had been tacitly declared between the party leaders at today’s PMQs. Instead of going on the offensive, Cameron and Miliband turned… Continue reading
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PMQs: David Cameron flails as Tory backbench stays glum
Today’s Prime Minister’s Questions was not a good one for David Cameron, but it could have been a great deal worse. With a U-turn on minimum pricing on the cards… Continue reading
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PMQs: David Cameron’s high pay/low benefits problem
Today’s Prime Minister’s Questions highlighted the problem Cameron has on high earners and bankers. Ed Miliband chose to attack on George Osborne’s opposition to the EU’s bonus cap, and he… Continue reading
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PMQs sketch: Miliband has ‘one of those days’
What a strange PMQs. The house seemed half empty. The tug of elsewhere dominated proceedings. Richard Drax asked the prime minister if ‘prospective members of parliament’ should ever speak in… Continue reading
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David Cameron sails through what should have been a difficult PMQs
Today’s PMQs should have been a tricky one for David Cameron. Ed Miliband had the ratings downgrade with which to attack the Prime Minister. But Cameron sailed through the questions… Continue reading
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PMQs sketch: In which Cameron both chooses and answers the questions.
Whoosh! Crasshh! Ploophm! Crummppp! The personal attacks came pounding in on David Cameron today. Ed Miliband asked about declining living standards and set about portraying the prime minister as an… Continue reading
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The Tory 2015 message: times are tough, but they’d be worse under Labour
Today’s PMQs was not, as James says, a tricky one for David Cameron. He had some good jokes and embarrassing gossip to poke Ed Miliband with, even though the Labour… Continue reading
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PMQs: Ed Miliband fails to bowl Cameron out
I suspect that David Cameron was in a better mood at the end of PMQs than at the start. He sailed through the session with relative ease. Ed Miliband went… Continue reading
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PMQs sketch: Ed Miliband vs David Cameron on the ‘bedroom tax’
It was cynical. It was shameless. It was low-down politics in every way. But Miliband’s stunt at PMQs very nearly worked. His theme was the reform of housing benefit that… Continue reading
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PMQs: Ed Miliband’s ‘bedroom tax’ attacks ignore the facts
At a particularly unedifying PMQs today, one Labour MP even suggested that ministers need cognitive behavioural therapy. The cause of all this rancour: the so-called ‘bedroom tax’. Now, the ‘bedroom… Continue reading
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PMQs sketch: Dave prepares the Fortnums hamper for his food bank visit
It was the croc that didn’t snap, the firework that failed to fly, the jeroboam that refused to go pop. Last week, David Cameron’s speech on Europe was supposed to… Continue reading
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PMQs: Ed Miliband argues Labour would borrow for success
‘We’d borrow more, but we’d use it better.’ That was the message Ed Miliband found himself trying to get across when attacking David Cameron at PMQs today. He accused the… Continue reading
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PMQs sketch: David Cameron, saviour of Europe
David Cameron’s entrance to the Commons at noon was cheered so ecstatically by his backbenchers that broadcasters decided to run the footage again, straight after PMQs. The Tory cheers redoubled… Continue reading
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PMQs: It’s Cameron’s turn to have some fun
Last week at PMQs, Ed Miliband had great fun, mocking the wait for David Cameron’s Europe speech. He lampooned the Prime Minister as the weak leader of a divided party.… Continue reading
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PMQs sketch: Cameron and Miliband’s merry slanders
It was written in the faces at PMQs today. Ed Miliband seemed relaxed and happy as he exploited Tory splits ahead of Cameron’s Euro-address on Friday. The PM looked irritable… Continue reading
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PMQs: Miliband mocks ‘divided’ Tories
After PMQs today, David Cameron must be wishing he could just get on and deliver his much-trailed Europe speech. Ed Miliband took advantage of all the speculation to mockingly question… Continue reading
39 Comments