Mehdi Hasan

Mehdi Hasan’s polemical take on politics, economics and foreign affairs

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My Question Time clash with Cable and Redwood

Last week’s show has been uploaded on YouTube.

 

Here's part one. You can also watch parts two, three, four, five and six.

16 comments

thinkov's picture

please announce forthcoming battles

i'd love to see zizek on qt

Nick's picture

Hi Lou, Yes the audience was getting nicely rowdy! Hardly surprising when the bombastic baroness puts in an appearance. My guess is she had a message in her ear piece to moderate her tone about half way through. The audience was very hostile, although worryingly receptive whenever welfare was talked about. I thought Labour spoke very well as did Max Mosley, he is very succinct. I've posted elsewhere on my views on Cameron's declining popularity, can't remember which thread it is as there are currently so many on NS, it's difficult to know where your posts are! This lot are being very deceptive over the October cuts because a lot of the changes have already gone through various impact assessments and draft regulatory reform. They keep saying 'can't speculate' when they know what's there. One can only assume they are deeply ashamed over what is to come. My guess is there will be a move towards transitional reducing of the higher tax limit level, you wait and see how that goes down with middle England. All the people currently shouting 'Benefit scrounger' will soon shut up when they see they too are being hurt where it hurts most; in their wallets! That's when the furry will turn towards the Banker's and this Lot's failure to do a single thing to redress that particular problem. The Bank Levy is a lame punitive measure. The coalition are in a corner with the banks because they need them to lend; and that goes against all they've been bleating on about.

I'm pleased to see Yvette Cooper do so well in the shadow cabinet votes, we are beginning to look a better alternative, we've got to start speaking up though.

swatantra's picture

I think I'd could just about put up with Warsi instead of Abbott. About time Abbott was rested, and Portillo, and Kennedy, and Andrew Neil brought along some new protogees with something actually gutsey and interesting to say, intead of the tripe we get from the well oiled trio. Abbott is becoming more and more unbearable to take.
Interesting, that Paxo couldn't get an honest answer out of Teressa May apart from asking her out for a date. Teressa's new hairstyle really does suit her.

Lou's picture

Yes Nick, the shadow cabinet is beginning to look good and should be some forceful opposition. It's so good to see the eleven women out of twenty five too, shows the ConDems up a little with their paltry few and one of those a token Minister.

Max Mosley came over very well and to my shock, I even agreed with Charles Clarke. I'll have a look around for your other posts, I'm behind on some of the postings.

I look at audience reactions on programmes like QT, the fiasco of Child benefit dominating the Tory conference for three days and the appeasing statements then rushed out by Cameron regarding tax breaks for married couples and I think some of the Government are beginning to feel a little worried over it all.

Osborne will not move an inch, he's another Tory who isn't for turning. As for Cameron, we've all this talk of communities, in it together and a call to arms for the Big Society but they seem to forget something, it was their party who destroyed communities when they were last in power,it was their policies that divided communities, it was them who devastated industries, put huge numbers into poverty, closed local shops, post offices, broke up services and broke up society as we knew it. It's a bit bloody rich for them to then tell us that community now matters and how we should all be pulling together.

Sue Davies's picture

@ thinkov - Zizek would spend the whole time saying either 'I don't accept your frame of reference',or 'your thinking is so 20th centuary'... but I love the thought!

Hal's picture

Clip 2 contains an absolutely astonishing quote from Vince Cable: "Some of these banks have balance sheets bigger than the whole of the British economy, and if they go down, you the taxpayer are liable for it."

The government has never, ever, guaranteed all the liabilities of the largest British banks. Indeed the tortuous negotiations over the Asset Protection Scheme were precisely to limit the potential liability of the taxpayer to a small portion of the balance sheet of RBS, certainly much smaller that "the British economy".

So what was Vince Cable thinking? Either this is a stunning admission of ignorance from a Business Secretary who should not be let anywhere near business affairs, or it was the most reckless change of government policy ever announced on Question Time.

Strangely, clip 1 has disappeared from youtube. Expect clip 2 to follow.

James's picture

No, Zizek would spend the entire time simultaneously wiping his nose and brushing his greasy looking hair from his forehead in a nose-forehead, forehead-nose repetition.

Lou's picture

On the general subject of QT, I'm watching Baroness Warsi on tonight's show and can't help thinking she is morphing into Margaret Thatcher with the back combed hair, the pearls and the talking louder than and over everyone else.

Dylan's picture

Lou - What I particularly liked was the audience groaning in unison everytime she mentioned "the mess Labour left us".

Due credit to the Brummies for not swallowing the coalition's fallacious meme.

Nick's picture

Hi Lou

The baroness barking was on form tonight, she can't answer a single question without reference to.....yawn...Labour....13 Years! It was good to hear Kennedy's prediction that she's got to go on the Portillo/Abbot show.

James's picture

@James

lol so true... seriously, I don't care how smart he thinks he is - a shower and some tissue - please!

jie4v7i14's picture

Christ Mehdi, don't worry what Cable said, and especially don't worry what that political loser Redwood said, especially.

Rob's picture

Look at me, aren't I wonderful. Look everyone.....

thinkov's picture

or on an andrex advert then!

shit I just read that exclamation marks are laughing at your own jokes

what do I do--fuck it it's staying

Lou's picture

Good morning Dylan & Nick,

The groans on QT are getting ever stronger, the first real show of it being Liverpool and the Lib Dem conference QT.

On the Daily Politcs this week she refused time and time again to answer the most simple of questions on Tory membership, as Charles Kennedy referred to, but then Theresa May on Newsnight was equally as bad.

Mark my words, BW sees herself as a future leader - delusions of grandeur maybe but a frightening thought nevertheless.

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