Isabel Hardman Isabel Hardman

Named and shamed: the PMQs time wasters

(Parliament UK)

You’re an ambitious backbench Labour MP with a weighty constituency caseload, legislation that you’re interested in improving, and a few personal campaigns to right various wrongs and make the world a better place. You get a spot on the order paper for this week’s Prime Minister’s Questions. What could you possibly ask your party leader about? One of the above? For some of the Labour MPs in today’s session, the very best questions they could come up with were ones merely asking Keir Starmer if he agreed he was doing a good job.

The utterly pointless question was a regular feature at Prime Minister’s Questions when the Tories were in power

The first pointless question came early in the session from Olivia Bailey. She asked: ‘I welcome the swift and decisive action this government are taking to secure our borders after the Conservatives lost control. In particular, I welcome the world-first deal struck with Iraq last week to tackle smuggling gangs.

Isabel Hardman
Written by
Isabel Hardman
Isabel Hardman is assistant editor of The Spectator and author of Why We Get the Wrong Politicians. She also presents Radio 4’s Week in Westminster.

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