PMQs

That’s how PMQ works ronib. Look back at old footage, with any PM you care to name, to see that it’s a ballet. The best approach from an opposition leader this parliament is from Sir Ed Davey, who behaves like a gentleman, and gets considered responses in return. The blunderbus approach is a waste of time.

Casdon what is blunderbuss about a straight question- “How many appointments been lost in the NHS due to strike action?”! The answer appears to be 93,000 which Kemi Badenoch had great pleasure in announcing.
It just makes the prime minister look foolish. And I don’t think for one moment, that Starmer did not know the figures.
A ballet Casdon is usually graceful and a thing of beauty. PMQs is more like Charge of the Light Brigade? The format needs to be updated.

These are serious issues, not a court masquerade.
Ed Davey gets considered answers because his questions are generally pointless and a useful way of wasting time.

Starmer does not like being questioned, and his attitude is increasingly contemptuous. He is Prime Minister, and should show some courtesy as befits his office, even when answering the Opposition, and a woman at that.

A union official in Birmingham was interviewed today, and evaded each question; at the end the aside from the studio was, just like the Prime Minister.

I can tell you don’t watch by your comment about Ed Davey’s questions eazybee, because what you say isn’t true, his questions are the most incisive ones.

I can’t think of one, but could you name any PM who has directly answered questions posed by the opposition? I’m not defending Starmer obfuscating, just saying it is what they all do.

The trouble with Kemi Badenoch is she is not very bright, doesn't know her numbers, facts or figures well and makes herself look a bit foolish as a result to those who care to check the facts. She mis quotes labour manifesto pledges to answer questions to try and show Labour up for not achieving pledges in 17 months when they are pledges for 5 years. Plus whenever did the Conservatives achieve against their manifesto pledges in all their many years of office! So she's starting from quite a failure base of issues her party, in which she served didn't achieve the things she blames labour for not achiveing. Not many parties do- but its the dance of PMQs...twas always thus.

she mis quotes also in her questions on occasion. pledges for a 5 year term of office. KB also makes too many statements rather than sticking to asking questions so doesn't do herself any favours.

Anyone who cares to fact check KB's questions and answers at yesterday's PMQ can easily find that out how KB gets it wrong and creates an own goal. No wonder she's lost 21 Conservative members to Reform! She gets 6 questions here are some from yesterday:

1) KB "Wes Sreeting said he'd end doctors strikes- how many appontments have been lost since Labour came to office?' ie July 2024. All Starmer has to do was answer less than the conservatives and he was correct. These are the facts:
- There was a prolonged period of NHS strike action for some years under conservative government.
- From July 2023 to February 2424- 7/8 months, under Conservatives 507, 000 appointments and operations were cancelled due to strike action.
- Labour came to power July 2025 and doctors staged a 5 day strike action in July. Wes Streeting said " My message to doctors after 5 days of strikes- work with us- if you go to war with us you'll lose". By 19th September the doctors settled with him and between coming to office July 2024 and November 2025, ie 17 months approximately 54,000 to 55,000 appointments and procedures were lost, just under 10% of the number lost between 2023 and February 2024 in 7 months under Conservatives! Why would KB want to highlight that. KS misses a trick in not making more of his reply.
- In November 2025 the doctors staged another 5 day strike, yet 850,000 procedures and appointments STILL took place and NEARLY ALL scheduled care took place. Hospitals reported low disruption as widely reported in the press.

So in light of the facts a failed, own goal question from KB and the fact is Labour has performed much, much better regarding cancelled operations and appointments than Conservatives due to strike action so far.

2) KB asks "Labour promised to recruit 13,000 new police officers- how many have they recruited?" Keith Starmer: '3,000 and rising" He missed the nuance and could have made more of his answer again....
- Kemi should have left it there, but in light of KS's not so good response instead pushed it further "Wrong again there are 1,300 fewer than at the last election"
- facts available on Dfe website:
a) teacher trainees who began 25/26 cohort grew by 11% ie 32,175 entrants compared to 28.988 the year before
b) Increased numbers of teacher returners returning to state sector education reached 17,274 in 24/25, highest number since 2024/15.
c) improved retention- 1 year retention for newly qualified teachers rose to 89.7%- highest record for 15 years!
d) Against the background of demographic predicted teacher retirements, and given that Labour is only 17 months into office and has nearly 4 more years in government its doing better to work effectively towards its manifesto pledges than the Conservatives.

Similar story with KB's question yesterday about police officer recruitment. Labour actually pledged to increase neighbourhood policing numbers, that is to have 13,000 neighbourhood officers by 2029. That total number includes Special Community Support Officers ( like Penny Lancaster, Rob Stewart's wife) and Special Constables. Labour pledged that 13,000 increased number total would include 3,000 newly recruited actual Police officers, i.e. not just moving Police Officers from other roles. Facts- by March 2025, 6/7 months later- the number of neighbourhood community officers had risen to 11,104 in Toal number towards the 13,000 target, and 489 of that number were newly recruited police officers. If progress continues there will be 3,000 newly recruited police officers in neighbour hood posts in 3/4 years not 5.

Maybe thats what Casdon meant by its like a ballet e.g dancing around with questions, playing hard and fast with facts to undermine current Prime Minster and sitting government. Twas always thus. Some are good at it- KB is not. Neither KS not KS dance it like a ballet thats for sure!

2) KB's second question- was about TEACHERS. I do apologise- it took me a long time to research her facts and figures- plus she did jump around a lot....

Yes, that’s what I meant about it being like a ballet LemonJam. It’s rehearsed, the questions and answers are predicted in advance, and they all dance around point scoring. For any opposition question to get a meaningful answer it has to be well researched, to parry the initial government response and put the PM or minister who is responding on the spot with a more incisive second and third part of the question.

Exactly- sadly KB is not fleet of foot and her knowledge of facts/data is often wrong. In that way she's a gift to Labour. Her party MPs know it too, that's her problem. She also talked yesterday about KS being a "Caretaker PM" She just highlighted that she herself is a "Caretaker C leader" with many of her own party MPs defecting and reducing her number. I suspect KB won't last much beyond next May local elections. KS has already lasted longer than Liz Truss and may yet last longer than some other recent Conservative leaders- again such an example of a daft thing to highlight by KB. Just reminded me how many leaders the Conservatives had in recent years.....and as a result each bloated the House of Lords- but that's a whole other issue!

The House of Lords is being bloated as we speak. Keir Starmer has 25 Labour appointees going through. Now that does make a change from abolishing it! As he promised? Or something like?

Boris Johnson 87 new peers
Liz Truss 32 new peers(!)
Rishi Sunak 46 new peers.

Starmer has to redress the balance of the Lords, so this number seems exceptionally modest.

At least no Conservative pm was going to abolish the House of Lords.
3 years down the line and Starmer shows no signs of acting on his words.

He said he was going to replace the Lords with an elected second chamber ronib. Do you object to that in principle? In the meantime, it doesn’t mean that whilst the Lords is still in existence it should be dominated by one party, which it is currently.

I object to the principle that says x will happen and then it doesn’t. Starmer is showing true form yet again. It’s not the best way to win confidence.

Saying that KB isn’t very bright is just silly, of course she is.She also manages to land several blows on KS at PMQ’s and he gets rattled easily and gabbles his answers.The more I see of him the more I worry about Labour and its ability to stay the course.

Every body is entitled to their opinion whether KB's performance at PMQs is bright or not. For me she doesn't do herself or her party many favours at PMQ because her facts are often not true and she draws attention to issues Labour is perfuming. better against in last 17 months than Conservatives did in their term. I find that not very bright others can differ. When so many of what's left of her own MPs are defecting to Reform, speaks much louder than my opinions.....

Here we go.
Kemi Badenoch not very bright.
Ed Davey's questions are the most incisive.
A lengthy diatribe, (at least organised into paragraphs) direct from Party HQ attacking the Conservatives.
Actually, they are not in government and no-one is disputing their failings.
You need to examine the duplicitous Starmer's record, and his plans for the future as revealed by objectives not mentioned in the manifesto.

Yes of course Eazybee.
Not forgetting that the point of PMQs is to ask questions of the current situation and government actions and inactions. Not a lesson in history? It’s an update in essence of government moving forward… or not?

The PM should be made to answer questions, giving a valid response, rather than give 'the speech', as he always does.

The Speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, should ensure that he does.

Expecting a straight answer from Starmer is a waste of time. The guy is a pathological liar.

If Starmer says "just to be clear" once he says it a thousands times. And it's very clear what type of Prime Minister he is and no explanation needed

Agree with Arthur Askey

KB's questions to KS in PMQ this week- she gets 6 questions:

Q-1) KB asked "Can the RHG tell the House why his own Cabinet Ministers are call him a Caretaker Prime Minister" (Not sure the question is factually correct- has any CM actually described KS as Caretaker PM?) Anyway KS gives his reply accordingly.

Q-2) KB asked "Can the PM tell the House how much energy bills have fallen since the election?" KS answers "£150 a year on top of £150 a year last year".

Q3) KB asked "Labour pledged to recruit 6,500 extra teachers, how many more are there?" KS answers "More than when Conservatives left office I'm proud to say and on an upward trajectory" KB says he's wrong and issues an invitation to check the figures on the DFE website....

Q4) KB asked- "The PM promised to recruit 13,000 extra police officers- how's that going?" KS answers "3,000 more by March 2025 and rising..."

Q5) "He said (the Health Secretary) he'd end the doctors strike so how many appointments were lost to strike action since last July?' KS answers ...."we've invested in 5 million extra appointments.."

Q6) KB asked "Isn't it time that Labour admits its isn't working"? KS of course did not admit that Labour isn't working (no PM would surely- (did anyone expect him to?) and instead gave his reasons why he thinks Conservative isn't working. (I would suggest most PMs would answer in a similar way).

After KS gives KB her answer, she then parries back and KS then parries back to her until she asks her next question. Many describe this traditional part of proceedings as a dance/ ballet/political fencing/a pantomime etc. Some like it some don't. Has been like this in PMQs between PMs and Opposition leaders for many, many years. It's supposed to be a demonstration of democracy.

It's for the electorate to decide whether a PM's answers to questions are valid or correct I would suggest. Thats is the function of democracy. There are media outlets who carry out post PMQ fact checks for anybody interested. The electorate is always able to check out facts, numbers etc also if they so choose. E.g. KB made reference to DFE website issuing an invitation to check the numbers of teacher recruitment- I did because I was interested. Not everyone will, I accept.

I would not expect Lindsey Hoyle to intervene after a PM has given their answer- he's meant to be impartial. He does intervene when the parrying/dancing/political pantomime display gets too heated- that's the crux of his role.

ronib

I object to the principle that says x will happen and then it doesn’t. Starmer is showing true form yet again. It’s not the best way to win confidence.

My feelings exactly. There's a lot of "I promise we will think about talking about doing something about it" then nothing concrete actually happens. Also, "spin" is back is as much as Labour is now claiming their anti illegal immigration policy is working because no small boats have crossed The Channel in the last 28 days - yeah, don't mention the weather has been far too bad for boat crossings. And "50,000 NEW hospital appointments". New? Not just reinstated because doctors got a massive pay rise to end the last set of strikes and went back to work prior to voting for more strikes next week. Labour isn't working!

They all do it! Never heard a politician give a direct answer to a question...EVER!