Cameron’s secret weapon

Cameron “does” punters very well. When I’ve followed him on the campaign trail, I’ve been struck by how he has a gift whereby he can click with pretty much anyone. For those who didn’t see his interview on Newsnight last night, you can watch it again here. It was arranged by Radio One’s Rajini Vaidyanathan, who has a deadly knack of catching politicians off guard (as Gordon Brown found out).

She had assembled what should, for Cameron, have been a troublesome mix of Radio One listeners. A working single mother from Gravesend who wanted to know why she should be discriminated against under the Tories, and thought Cameron as “borderline smug”. A Welsh 14-year-old who wants somewhere safe for her friends to go underage drinking and thought (initially) that Cameron needs to “open his eyes more”. A London primary school teacher, who is worried about gangs and knife crime. A woman who wonders if Cameron is being smug.