Am I being too cynical here?


by Sunny Hundal    
8:38 am - April 30th 2008

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So David Cameron admits that he hasn’t exactly kept to his promise of “ending Punch and Judy politics”. Well there’s a surprise. The king of sarcasm, Justin McKeating, nails it:

David Cameron has admitted he has not managed to keep his pledge to “end Punch and Judy politics” – blaming the fact that calling the Prime Minister a cycloptic psychopath has proved a better strategy.

“I will absolutely hold up my hand…this is a promise I couldn’t be bothered to deliver,” the Tory leader said.

“Look, what would you do? You can spend all day formulating policy and listening to the petty concerns of voters. But when your spin doctors tell you that portraying the Prime Minister as a hapless, lonely weirdo is an easier way to win the general election, you jolly well need to sit up and listen.”

He said prime minister’s question time was “an adversarial system” adding: “Of course we don’t have a policy worth a candle. When standing up and making thinly veiled innuendoes about the Prime Minister’s sanity has proved a sure-fire way to get ahead in the the opinions polls, who needs them?

“I do accept that I take a rubbish approach. It is rubbish. I don’t make any apology for that.”

Writing in the Daily Mail, Peter Oborne, perhaps the only reason to read that paper, said this last week:

There is always a herd instinct in British politics and David Cameron has confidently placed himself at the head of an ugly, baying mob. Like all mobs, Cameron’s brutish band of brothers has little interest in decency or decorum.
…
Just like the Tory leader today, Tony Blair very rarely attacked his opponents on matters of policy. Instead, like Cameron, he concentrated on personal issues. Blair portrayed John Major as weak, dithering and the victim of events. Cameron does exactly the same to Gordon Brown today.

Admittedly, I’m not a fan of this silly politics either and anyone who’s surprised Cameron went back on his promise should really go back to the comments section of Guido Fawkes and stay there.

But are attack ads so bad? The Libdems unveiled two attack ads this week, with Boris and Ken in their sights, and both have been universally panned by commenters on Libdemvoice. Ok, they’re not funny but I don’t see a problem with attack ads.

Aren’t they the future, given that there are no broadcasting rules on YouTube and the Libdems can release as many as they want without worrying about Ofcom? Who wouldn’t be seduced?

Will the British public really be repelled by it all? Or is it more that we wish the public would not be seduced but as soon as its proven they work (like in the USA), then everyone will jump on the bandwagon?

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About the author
Sunny Hundal is editor of LC. Also: on Twitter, at Pickled Politics and Guardian CIF.
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Story Filed Under: Blog ,Media ,Realpolitik ,Westminster


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Reader comments


1. Jennie

If attack ads are the future, we’re all fucked. Yes, the British public hate them, but not because they don’t like to see people brought down (they do), more because if politicians spend all their time slinging mud at each other it reinforces the idea, extremely prevalent at the moment, that politicians are only in it for themselves, only interested in petty infighting and points scoring, not interested in serving the public who elected them, etc.etc. etc.

2. ukliberty

“Will the British public really be repelled by it all?”

Yes. The electorate is turned off by negative campaigning. See for instance the Electoral Commission’s report on the 2005 election. Negative campaigns influence people not to bother voting.

If you see low turnout as a problem, negative campaigns are part of that problem.

3. Leon

I’m not sure how you can not be a fan of ‘punch and judy’ style PMQ’se yet like attack ads?

4. ad

Not to be cynical, but I think this blog has shown far more dislike of the Tories, than liking for Labour.

If that is what people want, they are quite likely to be given it.


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