Category Archives: Question Time

Question Time Audience Delivers Damning Verdict On Tory Rwanda Policy

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The government’s Rwanda policy was unanimously rejected by the audience of the BBC’s Question Time – despite most of them being Tory voters.

Not a single person put their hand up when asked by presenter Fiona Bruce asked who backed the controversial plan.

The damning verdict was delivered on the same day that the Court of Appeal ruled that the policy of sending asylum seekers to Rwanda to have their claims processed was illegal.

Bruce said: “We’re very careful how we select our audiences here and I’m not trying to overstate the importance – this is not a YouGov poll.

“But what I’m seeing here is that even though we have more people who voted Conservative than any other single party here, is there anyone here who supports sending people to Rwanda?”

When no one in the Exeter audience put their hand up, panel member and TV chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall shouted “good on you.”

Bruce then asked social care minister Helen Whately, who was also on the panel, if she had a response to the audience’s rejection of her government’s signature immigration policy.

She replied: “This is a very hard problem to solve and I think most of us feel that we want to be welcoming people and understand that people have made hard and difficult journeys to try and come to the UK and choose to get into a small boat.”

The results of the straw poll also fly in the face of claims made today by home secretary Suella Braverman when she said the majority of British people back the Rwanda policy.

Rishi Sunak has said the government will appeal against the court’s ruling as he tries to salvage his promise to “stop the boats” carrying migrants across the Channel.

He said: “The policy of this government is very simple, it is this country – and your government – who should decide who comes here, not criminal gangs. And I will do whatever is necessary to make that happen.”

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Vaccines Minister Ties Herself In Knots Over No.10’s Alleged Christmas Party And People Are Exasperated

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The vaccines minister Maggie Throup tried to toe the party line on BBC Question Time when she evaded questions about the alleged Christmas party.

The Mirror broke a story that there was a gathering of around 40 or 50 people on December 18 last year in No.10, while the rest of London was in Tier 3 Covid restrictions – meaning people could not socialise outside their households indoors.

Ministers have been trying to address the scrutiny by claiming that all of the Covid rules were followed at the time – but this isn’t quite answering questions over whether the party actually happened.

Throup was in the spotlight on Thursday when Question Time audience member asked for clarity over whether the party had actually taken place.

She repeated the party line and said: “I have been reassured that all guidance was carefully followed.”

The show’s host Fiona Bruce then turned to the audience and asked: “Does that answer your question?”

When the crowd replied with a resounding “no”, Bruce asked Throup: “Do you want another go?”

“My answer is not going to change because the guidance was followed, as the prime minister quite clearly said,” Throup maintained.

While Labour’s shadow minister Thagnam Debbonaire put her head in her hands, the audience groaned.

Bruce butted in and said: ”So clearly there was no Christmas party.”

The rules stated at the time that people could not have parties with anyone outside of their social bubble.

Throup replied: “Whatever the event was, then the guidance was followed.”

“So there was an event,” Bruce said.

Throup then tried to conclude the topic by saying, “this has just been rumour and hearsay,” but judging by Twitter’s reaction, the subject is far from over.

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David Lammy Calls Out Grant Shapps Over ‘Nasty And Unnecessary’ Cuts

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BBC Question Time

Grant Shapps and David Lammy during BBC Question Time

Grant Shapps was hung out to dry by Labour’s David Lammy over the upcoming cuts to universal credit on Thursday.

The transport secretary and the shadow justice secretary were at loggerheads on BBC Question Time as Lammy demanded a U-turn over the upcoming £20-a-week reduction.

Lammy said: “When given a choice, the government is always choosing not to side with the poorest in society.

“I remember it was not that long ago that the Conservatives were described as the nasty party.”

Glancing at the Tory minister, Lammy added: “Grant, you can stare at your notes as much as you like, you’re not going to find the answers.”

He continued: “This cut should not be being made, it’s as simple as that.”

The government is trying to take the universal credit back to pre-pandemic levels with this £20 cut, but recent analysis seen by The Observer has predicted that the cut would push 840,000 people into poverty.

Lammy pointed out that the £20 a week could, for example, cover the average energy bill and so described it as “mean, nasty and unnecessary”.

He also noted that the cut was “coming alongside an increase in national insurance, economists are predicting an inflation rise and certainly interest rates going up by next February”.

Defending the government, Shapps said: “OK, look, you say you would do all of these things, but the effective tax raise for people on Universal Credit was 90%.

“There were cliff edges for people working 60, 24 and 30 hours.

“It’s not like the system’s been perfect in the past.”

Shapps concluded: “We have to work on the facts here, and the facts are we need to pay for whatever it is we do provide, the universal credit system is working vastly better than the system it replaced and actually handled the coronavirus [pandemic].”

Yet, even some Tory backbenchers were reportedly pushing for a compromise deal as it will undermine the prime minister’s promise to “level up” the UK.

There have also been reports that ministers are now looking to increase benefit payments to cushion the universal credit cut.

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