There comes a moment in a PM’s journey when he crests the ridge and starts on the downhill leg. David Cameron made that unhappy transition today. PMQs began with a gag from a Labour backbencher.
Tom Blenkinsop:
‘The prime minister may believe there’s no alternative to the double dip. But some in the cabinet believe there is an alternative. To him!’
Cameron replied by listing his usual trinity of attainments. Lower deficit, more jobs, interest rates at record lows. Then Ed Miliband had a go. Instead of raising an issue, he went for Cameron’s reputation.
‘Given the government’s U-turn on alcohol,’ he said, ‘is there anything the prime minister could organise in a brewery?’
Cameron improvised. He said he planned to throw a party to celebrate Ed Ball’s longevity as shadow chancellor. Hardly the greatest riposte. Miliband lurched at him with a deadly blade.
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