WE reported this week that Bolton's Labour MPs were impressed by their new leader Jeremy Corbyn’s first appearance at Prime Minister’s Questions — but I must say I was not.
The veteran MP was taking on David Cameron for the first time in the House of Commons and had vowed to create a 'less theatrical' spectacle. He said that when he was out and about speaking to voters they were unimpressed by Prime Ministers Questions (PMQs).
It is a cliche we hear all too often (and we in the media don't help) by repeating this oft used phrase — 'people are fed up of Punch and Judy politics'.
By this we mean the rigmarole of the MPs shouting, laughing and taunting each other across the dispatch box while debating often very serious issues.
Who are these people who are tired of this? I'm not. It's great entertainment. PMQs is just about the only accessible bit of our democratic process. If anything, more of our politics should be done like this.
The MPs are no more or less badly behaved in Parliament than they were 20 or 40 years ago. PMQs is a great tradition of this country — so why seek to change it?
Nevertheless, MrCorbyn started his process of attempted change by using questions submitted to him by members of the public to quiz Mr Cameron — rather than his own.
But by asking other people's questions, he sounded more like a radio DJ reading out listeners' song requests, rather than the experienced and knowledgeable MP he is.
We elect MPs to represent us in Parliament because they are much better equipped to do so.
They have an army of researchers and aides to make sure they are fully informed on the most important issues affecting the people who elected them.
They are paid a decent wage (£67,060 a year at the moment) to hold the government to account. So by inviting voters to send in their questions, the Labour leader was failing to do his job properly.
As much as I'd love to some weeks, I can't just get readers to send me their views and then print them on this page. What would be the point of that? Besides which, we have a letters page just for that purpose.
Mr Corbyn has vowed to change politics for the better — but this idea of reading out voters questions was a gimmick, pure and simple.
It actually reeked of a stunt dreamt up by some young PR advisor designed to get the new Labour leader some positive press — rather than an initiative he has devised himself.
And that is the exact opposite of changing politics.
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