Spectre of Blair lingers during PMQ clashes on terrorism

Posted by Theo Blackwell at Wed, 11/06/2008 - 10:33am in

A subdued House of Commons listened to the party leaders debate the merits of the proposed 42 days pre-charge detention for terrorism suspects at this week's Prime Minister's Questions - and once again David Cameron rather adroitly emerged the victor, and again seemed to grasp the mantle of Blair.

While a defeat or a narrow win with the support of the Ulster Unionists is not reckoned to be fatal to the government, a further poor result could undermine the Brown premiership still further.

As is usual with questions of national security, party leaders are keen to be seen as acting in the national interest, rather than in party political manner (unless, of course, they can spot an opportunity to accuse their opponent of acting in this way).

Rather than jumping in to the issue on everyone's mind, Cameron - for reasons which became clear in his questioning around 42 days - started with some gentle questioning about the success of UK interventions in Afghanistan, pressing the Prime Minister to be more open on which aspects were working and which were not.  Becoming more forceful, he asked about the growing strength of the Taliban and, more pointedly, whether roads built by NATO forces were now being used to extort money form civilians.  

The implication of this seemingly oblique line of attack is that the Prime Minister sets out to do the right things but is ineffectual in achieving them and isn't transparent in admitting his failures.

Cameron pressed home this message turned to the 42 day issue, to be debated later in the day, questioning the basis of Brown's support in the intelligence services, police and prosecution service for the new anti-terrorism measures.  He also criticised the proposed legislation as being weak on account of its complexity.  

A defensive Gordon Brown cited expert support for his move with the police, judiciary and – referring to the sometimes maverick Conservative blog Conservative Home – even with some Conservatives.  Moreover, even if this was unequivocal in some quarters, he argued, it was popular with the public. 

This is what Cameron seemed to be waiting for: the chance to seize the moral, albeit liberal, highground. 

Government, the Conservative Leader argued, should do what is right - not what is popular.  The government's approach was over-complex and illiberal: it was (the sound-bite of the day) "ineffective authoritarianism."

Those viewers with long memories who remembered the original '90 day' debate in November 2005 would remember Tony Blair's remarks in defeat to the then Tory caretaker Michael Howard: 

"Sometimes it is better to lose and do the right thing than to win and do the wrong thing..."
 
This is the point Cameron sought to make today.

Once again, a year after he left office, PMQs was today dominated by the spectre of Tony Blair. For as long as he can keep him there, David Cameron will continue to get the better of these exchanges.

Tagged with: Gordon Brown, Tony Blair, PMQs, David Cameron