Britain's First TV Election Debate

[Sheilbh]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2010/apr/15/leaders-debate-nick-clegg-tv

Leaders' debate: Nick Clegg seizes his moment in the TV spotlight

Lib Dem leader makes powerful pitch as he depicts his party as a significant change from Labour and the Conservatives


Gordon Brown pitted his experience as the man equipped to save the country from the risk of a double-dip recession, against David Cameron's call to lead the country towards change, in the opening exchanges of the first televised leaders' debate in British electoral history tonight.

But Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat leader, appeared to win most public support as he made a powerful pitch that he represented change from the two old parties. In a confident performance, he told the audience in Manchester: "Do not let anyone tell you that the only choice is the old politics. We can do something new, something different this time."

Pointing to the other two leaders, he added: "Now, they are going to tell you tonight that the only choice you have is between the two old parties who've been taking it in turns to run things for years."

Cameron scored an early hit by apologising on behalf of all the political class for the expenses crisis, and repeatedly tried to use real-life stories to bring home his points to the large watching audience.

"The expenses saga brought great shame on parliament, and I'm extremely sorry for everything that happened," he said. "Your politicians – frankly, all of us – let you down."

Brown opened his address claiming these were "no ordinary times," and this "no ordinary election".

An instant Sun/YouGov poll put Clegg as the clear winner on 51%, with Cameron second on 29% and Brown trailing on 19%. Another, by ComRes for ITV News, gave the debate decisively to Clegg, on 43%, with Cameron on 26% and Brown on 20%, trailing behind. A poll of guardian.co.uk users scored Clegg as the winner with 59%, but put Brown in second place, with 32%. Cameron scored 9%.

The debate covered most of the main issues that have so far dominated the election: the economy, crime, immigration, education and cleaning up politics, issues on which Cameron is likely to score well with voters. The issue of funding for equipment for the armed forces was also covered.

On the economy, the dividing line between Cameron's plan for immediate cuts and Brown's warning that such cuts would derail the economic recovery were displayed in full. Clegg, meanwhile, challenged the other two to "be honest" with the public about the scale of the cuts needed, pledging to cut the £100bn Trident programme.

Brown, showing his expected mastery of detail, on three occasions operated a pincer movement to isolate Cameron by siding with Clegg over democratic reform, tax increases for the wealthiest, and on social care.

They closed the debate with Clegg claiming his party offered a "real alternative" to the other pair's "old politics". Brown said he feared for the economy if the Tories won.

The Labour leader – playing his strongest hand – pledged to protect the NHS, police and schools while cutting the deficit, but Cameron accused him of plucking numbers out of thin air.

Clegg, in one of the more telling hits of the night, countered: "The more they attack each other, the more they sound like one another."

Brown relied on his experience, which was reflected in his opening remarks. He said: "These are no ordinary times and this is no ordinary election. This is the defining year to get these decisions right. Get the decisions wrong now and we could have a double-dip recession. I know what this job involves, and I look forward to putting my plan to you this evening."

Cameron tried to put distance between the Tories and 13 years of Labour – and attempted to draw the sting out of the toxic issue of MPs' expenses.

"Your politicians – frankly, all of us – let you down. We can go on as we are, or we can say: 'No, Britain can do much better.' We can deal with our debts, we can get our economy growing and avoid this jobs tax, and we can build a bigger society."

The Tory leader said not everything Labour had done over the past 13 years had been wrong, and he would keep the good things. "But we need change, and it's that change that I want to help to lead," he said.

Brown pushed Cameron hard on whether the Tories were committed to matching his promise to increase police funding, saying: "You can airbrush your posters but you cannot airbrush your promises."

Trying to present Cameron as evasive, seen by Labour as one of the Tory leader's weaknesses, the prime minister tried to pin him down by saying: "This is not Question Time – this is answer time, David."

In another attempt at a joke, Brown referred to the Tory depictions of him on their campaign posters, saying: "I'm grateful, by the way, to David for putting up all these posters about crime and me. You know there's no newspaper editor who has done as much for me in the last two years – because my face is smiling on these posters. I'm very grateful to you and Lord Ashcroft for funding these."

Brown also said the risk of taking £6bn out of the economy now was too big. Cameron countered it was only £1 in every £100, pointing out that most businesses supported him. "Why should we pay our taxes for government waste?" he asked.

In lengthy exchanges on immigration, Cameron said Britain had benefited from such movement across decades. "But I do think that it has got out of control, and does need to be brought back under control."

Brown shot back: "I do not like these words, because we are bringing it under control. Net inward migration is falling, and will continue to fall because of the measures we have taken." Clegg focused on the controls placed on Britain's borders, claiming they were in "complete chaos".

Cameron said net inward migration had been around 70,000 under Tory governments, but under Labour it had never been fewer than 140,000. Clegg said: "What has gone so wrong is talking tough and delivering chaos in the way that it is run."

He also said the other two leaders were obsessed about "mythical efficiency savings on pot plants" as a way of cutting the deficit.

Both before and after the debate, the parties' big political beasts – including Lord Mandelson, George Osborne, William Hague, Paddy Ashdown, Andy Coulson and Alistair Campbell – toured the press room trying to lower expectations.

All threeparties were told that female voters are the least decided. Clegg went into the debates boosted by a surge in his party's poll standing. The YouGov/Sun poll ahead of the debate showed the Tories down four points to 37, Labour down one to 31, and the Liberal Democrats rising four to 22 points.

It was surprisingly interesting and, yeah, I think Clegg won.  Funnily enough as we've never had a debate like this the parties were learning from US consultants.  One of their pieces of advice was to use anecdotes to illustrate policy.  Apparently the focus groups show that British people are neutral or actively dislike these anecdotes.  All three, alas, used about 20

It was a real debate though.  Could have done with a bit more of fighting spirit but still pretty good.

[jimmy olsen]

Britain has never had tv election debates before? 

Welcome to 1960.

[Fate]

Why wasn't the BNP allowed to participate? Shameful behavior on the part of the BBC. You can't silence the people!

[MadImmortalMan]

30% of Tories and 30% of Labour supporters think Clegg won the debate. Interesting.

[MadImmortalMan]

Britain has never had tv election debates before? 

Welcome to 1960.

Heh


Would you buy a car from this man?

[Sheilbh]

Why wasn't the BNP allowed to participate? Shameful behavior on the part of the BBC. You can't silence the people!

ITV

Britain has never had tv election debates before? 

Welcome to 1960.

We only had our first televised interview with a party leader in the 1960s

Normally the leader who's doing worst in the polls wants a debate, the leader doesn't and the Lib Dems are desperate to be included.  I think tonight showed why on all three points.

[Agelastus]

Britain has never had tv election debates before? 

They're just not British, dear boy.

I watched a truly excellent edition of "Have I got News for you" instead.

[Admiral Yi]

Hey Shelf, did the moderator ask "tough" questions?

[Josquius]

Downloading it now...Hope its good.

[Sheilbh]

Hey Shelf, did the moderator ask "tough" questions?

Very different format - tough questions are only really of use in an interview.  In the UK we used to have the leaders each going to do an interview with Paxman (who's notoriously aggressive), so far only Clegg's done it and Cameron's pulled out, because of the debate. 

They got to make opening statements.  Then went through pre-screened questions from the audience.  Each got to answer and I think each then got another answer (rebut style).  After that it became a bit of a free-for-all with the moderator shouting "MR BROWN!", "MR CLEGG!" to keep the debate moving and generally giving everyone time to respond to direct attacks made on them, "MR CAMERON!"

The questions themselves were bland.  They were almost entirely apolitical.  So one woman says she owns a pub and no issues provoked more talk among her customers than expense what will they do that can restore any credibility to politics?  That sort of thing.  It was a spring board for each to do their spiel and then argue themselves out.

[Barrister]

Over here it's pretty common for third (or even 4th or 5th) party leaders to do well in a debate - the issue of lowered expectations and all that.

[Sheilbh]

Hey Shelf, did the moderator ask "tough" questions?

Actually by the target he set himself the moderator was tough:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/election-2010/7591256/General-Election-2010-TV-debate-moderator-Alastair-Stewart-to-be-tough.html

Alastair Stewart 'to be tough'
Alastair Stewart, the moderator of the first televised party leaders' debate, will cut leaders short if he thinks the debate is getting boring.

The debate will be structured around questions from the studio audience, to which each party leader will get to give a set-piece answer.

After that, Stewart and his producers at ITV can allow up to four minutes of additional "free debate" on the topic. But according to the pre-agreed rules, that debate proceeds only "on merit".

"What 'on merit' means is, is it interesting? Is there sufficient tension between them?" said Stewart. "So if they surprise us and are very conciliatory and agree absolutely, then we'll move on."

Stewart said that it is part of his job to be an "emotional barometer" of the studio audience's response to the interplay between the leaders.

"You can sometimes feel and sense a hunger for more on a particular subject," said Stewart.

"Or you hear the delicate tones of buttocks shuffling, and you think, let's move on."

Stewart said that he was obliged to keep things interesting because the debate will be "a live television event, for a very, very big audience".

Both Stewart's own performance as moderator, and ITV's coverage of the debate as a whole, will be minutely scrutinised. Tonight's event is the first ever debate between party leaders to be televised during a British general election campaign.

ITV has spent £500,000 on producing the programme - an unusually large amount for this kind of broadcast - and will follow it with an almost instant opinion poll reaction on News at Ten.

However Stewart said that it is not his job to prevent two of the party leaders ganging up on the third. "In terms of ganging up, it's up to them, it really is," he said. "If two of them choose to gang up on the other, that's for the other one to fight the good fight. All I'm going to do is make sure that the 'other one' has just as much time to retaliate and respond."

ITV has put in place a complex computerised timing system, to help ensure that the leaders get equal opportunity to put their points across. But Stewart said that he would try to police the timing as much by arm movements and eye signals as by verbally interrupting. "The last thing people at home want to hear is the moderator constantly blowing the whistle like one of those American traffic cops," he said.

Of course his antipathy for traffic cops probably comes from his two drink driving convictions.

[Neil]

Britain has never had tv election debates before? 

Welcome to 1960.

And look how well that worked out.  The 1960 election was decided based on who looked best on TV, and whose party machines were most able to rig the vote.

[jimmy olsen]

drink driving

Another British phrase that sounds incredibly grating.

[garbon]

Palin