Question Time is not one of my favourite TV shows, but I do almost always watch it. Often, I watch it cringing. Tonight I’m looking forward to seeing Alastair Campbell having his say. I was looking forward to seeing him skewer a Tory front-bencher. Got wine in and everything. Only to find that the government have refused to send a member of the cabinet unless Campbell was replaced. The BBC rightly refused this request. It says a lot about how weak the Conservatives are at making their case and how scared they are of Alastair, who’s really a lovely chap. Apparently, they used the excuse that AC isn’t an elected member of the Labour party. This just makes them look silly. How often did Labour ministers refuse to appear opposite people representing the Tories who held no elected posts? Never is the answer.
I do wonder if Labour can send one of our big beasts on each week and just scare Team Cameron away. It is ridiculous
of the Tories to try to dictate who can and can’t appear on a television show. To challenge the BBC’s independence is a dangerous precedent to set and makes them look foolish. Though I’d be more than happy for them to insist Carol Vorderman never appears again…..
- (h/t @IndiaKnight)
[…] my Thursday night routine was a bit of a gamble. I’ve written about the gamble here and here before. It’s the gamble of watching Question Time. Will it be fun and interesting, or will […]