Cameron blasts Brown's "unacceptable" behaviour over Iraq withdrawals

The real fireworks will happen on Wednesday - at PMQs (which, as usual, we'll be live blogging) - but responding to today's Iraq statement David Cameron had his first opportunity to cross swords with Gordon Brown.  After statesmanlike questions on the meat of Mr Brown's announcements (which included rights for Iraqi interpreters to apply for UK residency if they've served for twelve months), the Tory leader went for the jugular in his closing:

"You promised a thousand of our troops would be brought back before Christmas - but isn't it the case that 500 of them had already been announced and 270 of them were already back in the country?  I have to say to the prime minister, this is of a different order of magnitude to what we've had from him over the last decade.  This is not double-counting of government spending, this is not just spinning the good bits of a Budget, this is about dealing with people's lives and the families of our servicemen.  And does he agree that this is just not an acceptable way for a prime minister to behave?"

Comments

[Johnny Smythe]

COMMENT OVERWRITTEN BY THE EDITOR.

[Oscar Miller]

Cameron was excellent in the House - and the BBC is giving him good coverage. Altho' I noticed on PM they clipped the quote you give leaving out the figures - giving the impression he was only complaining about the trip not about spinning the numbers. Brown's performance was dismal - stuttering more and more as he increasingly came under fire from ever more aggressive questions.

[MikeA]

It's an excellent line of attack.
Focus on the duplicity, calculation and spin. Build a picture that Brown is even less trustworthy that the previous slipper incumbent an No.10 (the man who's name must not be mentioned by Labourites).
Focus on the simply ludicrous assertion that the polls had nothing to do with Brown pulling the Autumn election. They had everything to do with it.

Whatever happens don't focus on him being a bottler, whilst amusing it will be forgotten and is less important to the electorate than Brown's spinning, slipperiness and vacillation

[Chad Noble]

COMMENT OVERWRITTEN BECAUSE IT REFERRED TO A COMMENT THAT HAS NOW BEEN OVERWRITTEN.

YOU WERE RIGHT CHAD. I SHOULDN'T HAVE LET JOHNNY SMYTHE'S COMMENT THROUGH.

[Prodicus]

Everyone hoped Brown would bite back. He didn't even acknowledge that Cameron had spoken negatively. He refused the challenge to combat and left DC pissing in the wind. We can expect more of this. His plan is to ignore the Tories other than to steal from them. The man is concerned only with retaining office and drowning all opposition in words. Kinnock-in-office with a Fife accent.

[David Belchamber]

I am sure that DC has already got his tactics worked out for PMQs but might it not knock Brown even more off-guard if a killer comment/question about his bottling out of the election was left to a heavyweight back bencher (Ken Clarke or Spicer) to make real fun of him, while Cameron confined himself to a variety of critical questions like: what is the best estimate of our troop casulaties in Iraq or was anyone disciplined or sacked over the incompetence shown at the government laboratory where the foot and mouth outbreak started or what does Brown now say about the EU treaty not being the same as the proposed constitution?

[David Sergeant]

"about his bottling out of the election was left to a heavyweight back bencher (Ken Clarke or Spicer) to make real fun of him, while Cameron confined himself to a variety of critical questions"

I think this is a really good point. We forget how Norman Tebbitt could put the boot in and Prescott could always get away with saying something extreme letting Labour make a point while Blair looked responsible.

[Tony Makara]

Gordon Brown will use anyone to make himself look good. He is so underhand. This isthe sort of thing that makes people turn away from politics.

[Iain]

A more damaging attack might be for Cameron to question Brown's lack of mandate, going back the original point of calling for an election. Surprisingly its an argument that Brown himself is making in his own so called fight back.

Brown is saying he wants to put his vision into action and for the electorate to then decide. Well sorry but that's getting things arse about face, they way things work in a democracy is that politicians present their vision, and we decide if we want it. Labour put their vision to the electorate in 2005, and established a contract with the electorate with their manifesto. If Brown is intending to present a new vision, and breaching Labour's contract with the electorate ( as he is doing by not holding a referendum on the constitution) then he has no mandate, and so should call an election.

[Charlesjames]

During his interview with Andrew Marr on Sunday, Gordon Brown attempted to prove his competence by trumpeting his achievement in coping with the four crises - floods, foot and mouth, terrorism and the Northern Rock banking fiasco.
The blame for all four, however should be laid at his door when he was at No 11 Downing Street.
A lack of funding for the Environment Agency leading to blocked waterways compounded the flooding; foot and mouth was directly linked to a lack of Government funding for the Governments Pirbright Laboratory where the leakage occurred; inadequate border controls have led to illegal and unmonitored immigration; the panic reaction to a situation caused by measures imposed by him as Chancellor governing rules and regulations of the Bank of England.

[Jane]

I think the Tory Party really have to continue attacking Brown for his record and not letting him off the hook.

They have to show they are a real opposition and not just also spinning and looking to make political points.

They have to show that they care about this country and its people and that they want to protect it and us.

They have to show that they feel the pain of the many people whose lives have been badly affected by labour - the people whose loved ones have died in dirty hospital while the NHS splurges money on consultants, the pain of students coming out with massive debts and unable to get on the housing ladder, the pain of our junior doctors not getting jobs while their jobs are being given to people of other countries, so their huge training debts and skills are wasting away through intentional intent by the Labour Party to break the Middle Classes hold on the medical profession.

The Tory Party should threaten to take this government to court for trying to sell us out to the EU mafia, they must make sure they are aware of the vast dangers inherent with the Police state being constructed over our heads and without our position, they must show they really do realise the danger this country is in from this party. That particularly that Brown and the EU want the complete destruction of England as a unified country through mass immigration. They have to show our outrage that all the new jobs are going to immigrants and not to our own people. That many British people do want jobs but they are being wiped out of the job market by all the foreign competition flooding into the country.

[Iain]

"knock Brown even more off-guard if a killer comment/question about his bottling out of the election was left to a heavyweight back bencher..."

I would like to hear a Conservative back bencher question Brown on a snippet of information which slipped out over the weekend. Journalists reported that Brown was calling them up at 6am in the morning to remonstrate with them if he found an article he didn't like.

By asking Brown to confirm this would make him look as if he had completely lost the plot. To harangue journalists on what they had written about him, would clearly indicate he was obsessed with spin, it would also show he was coming off the rails if not mentally deranged , for a PM should have better things to do than worry about what journalists were writing.

[dog biter]

DC is now getting good poll rating because the public see him as the underdog, and an underdog who has bitten back in fairly spectacular way. DC needs to remain the underdog, getting kicked every so often but retaliating by going for Browns wotsits and hanging on to 'em.
Dave and the Boy Oz done a good job. Thrown a bit of much-needed meat to the party faithful.
This lapsing Tory back in the fold.

[Will James]

Got to disagree with David @ 18.12. Cameron is a heavy-weight. And why not let everyone lay into Brown at PMQs, from Cameron down. Every Tory MP worth their salt should be planning and coordinating to make Wednesday a double-whammy for Brown.

Do you reckon CCHQ could persuade Tebbit to do a newspaper interview, or appearance on the BBC to lay into him a well? Maybe Baroness Thatcher? Or is that too much wishful thinking?

[Edison Smith]

My living room floor is being polished, so I'm without BBC Parliament - I feel naked. Anyhoo, to the point...

What's turned out well is that the paragraph highlighted by Editor is the soundbite being played on the BBC, ITV and C4. Continuity and repetition of the point will help it ingrain into the minds of people.

And does he agree that this is just not an acceptable way for a prime minister to behave?"

That's the clincher. It belittles Brown as a little schoolboy getting a telling off from teacher.

[Henry Mayhew - Ukipper]

Chad usually is. Very good looking too.

[Malcolm Dunn]

I thought Cameron struck the right note in the Commons today.Now I look forward to Fox cross examining Browne on the ability of our remaining troops in Iraq to carry out their military commitments.I suspect he will find that they will not be able to patrol Basara, will not be able to prevent Iranian terrorist incursion and will be barely strong enough to protect themselves when they eventually withdraw. Our mission their is turning from tragedy to farce because of the actions of two PMs who believe in gestures rather than strategy.

[Curly]

I can't wait for Wednesday, hoping to see some more passion and anger from H.M. Opposition, with the possibility of more spinning twisting and turning from Broon.

[Mike Thomas (215cu)]

It was measured and very focussed.

The coverage on the news last night clearly showed Brown very defensive, journalists trying hard not to be totally dismissive but you could easily detect their contempt. Cameron fulfilled his role of reasonable yet incisive questioning and detached distain for him. An attitude everyone could relate to, I thought his restraint was very dignified and measured.

PMQ is where the real humiliation will lie and Cameron is going to beast him at the game Brown thinks he is the master of.

[TimC]

Good old BBC - when they reported the debate, they cut out the first line "You promised a thousand of our troops would be brought back before Christmas - but isn't it the case that 500 of them had already been announced and 270 of them were already back in the country?". Biased as ever.