Cameron runs to his mummy as Corbyn jabs him over health

Last Updated: February 24, 2016By

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How can anybody claim David Cameron won this week’s PMQs exchange with Jeremy Corbyn, when he had to go running to his mother for help?

Cameron’s concerns lie more with the ever-growing splits in his own party at the moment, and Corbyn wisely avoided discussing the European Union and focused on health. Junior doctors have announced three 48-hour strikes in March and April, in response to the imposition of an unfair and dangerous new employment contract by health secretary Jeremy Hunt.

Responding to Corbyn’s questions, Cameron made three mistakes.

The first was to keep harping back to the Tory claim that the UK needs a “seven-day NHS”. We already have one. People seeking treatment on a Sunday aren’t asked to “come back tomorrow” – they receive help immediately. The Tory lie is putting people off asking for help – and in fact creating the situation Cameron and Hunt say they want to end.

The second was to support Jeremy Hunt’s claim that thousands more people died at weekends due to staff shortages. They don’t. They die because they have serious health issues and have delayed bringing them to doctors, according to research.

Corbyn made it clear that Cameron and Hunt have misrepresented the research, and quoted the researchers saying it would be “rash and misleading” to say increased death rates at weekends were due to staff shortages – but Cameron ignored this. His response was to say the true figure for excess deaths was 11,000 – more than the 6k quoted by Jeremy Hunt originally.

It was an answer that completely missed the point. It doesn’t matter how many deaths are quoted – they aren’t due to staff shortages so the Conservative Government can’t use them to justify its health hazard of a new contract.

Incidentally, cowardly Cameron ran away from discussing the scandal of Hunt quoting unverified figures in order to ramp up public feeling against the doctors last year – and then allegedly ‘leaning’ on civil servants to hide this fact, including lying in response to a Freedom of Information request, to cover up what he had done.

Oh, and Cameron’s claim that we don’t have a seven-day NHS in Wales is a lie. This Writer has personally benefited from weekend healthcare here in Powys. When will Cameron stop lying about the NHS in Wales?

Finally, in response to a heckle from the Labour benches, Cameron had to bring his mother into the debate. Mrs Cameron (Snr) was recently reported to have joined the struggle against cuts to public services that have been foisted on the people of the UK by her son.

Cameron’s response to the jibe was an entirely irrelevant soundbite: “Smarten yourself up, do up your tie and sing the national anthem.”

That is what sealed the victory for Corbyn. Nothing that was said afterwards – even the references to Aneurin Bevan – could have changed the verdict.

Snap responses on Twitter, quoted by the Guardian, were as follows:

Bertha Mason: “Not a good idea… given that his own mother and aunt are against his policies.”

Sarah Champion MP: “Cameron has reached an all time low… Criticism of Corbyn’s dress sense when challenged on Junior Doctor contracts. Pathetic!”

Chris Evans MP: “Cameron should be ashamed of himself – since when did Corbyn’s dress sense have anything to do with junior doctors?”

Paul Waugh: “It’s the battle of the mums between Corbyn and Cameron today. Has politics really come to this?”

(For the sake of balance, let’s also include Robert Peston, letting the BBC down again with this: “Oh god, hard not to feel sorry for Jeremy Corbyn. Never a good idea to bring mums into any argument.” Just a couple of points, Robert: Jeremy Corbyn didn’t mention mums in the first place, David Cameron introduced them into the debate after a heckle; and, you do realise that Corbyn was speaking up in support of a media investigation? Just because you don’t work at the BBC any more doesn’t mean its output is entirely worthless.)

The result: Utter defeat for David Cameron – although some ignorant ‘lame-stream media’ hacks might try to convince you otherwise. Cameron was once again reduced to a miserable display of ignorance and disrespect.

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13 Comments

  1. shelley hutchings February 24, 2016 at 2:29 pm - Reply

    He, Cameron is a vile person. Pathetic.

  2. mili68 February 24, 2016 at 3:04 pm - Reply

    Tweeted @melissacade68

  3. David Woods February 24, 2016 at 3:59 pm - Reply

    Even in the past we had 7 day care, a number of my motorcycle accidents happened on weekends – Though I did have to wait in the corridor for several hours once waiting for a bed to become free!
    Maggie was in power then!

  4. che February 24, 2016 at 4:18 pm - Reply

    Robert Peston now works for ITV as “political correspondent”

    • Mike Sivier February 24, 2016 at 7:03 pm - Reply

      Yes indeed.

  5. Brian February 24, 2016 at 4:47 pm - Reply

    “Smarten yourself up, do up your tie and sing the national anthem.”

    So says the EMPEROR with conviction.

    • Mike Sivier February 24, 2016 at 7:03 pm - Reply

      And you know what happened to the Emperor when he tried on his new clothes!

  6. Joan Edington February 24, 2016 at 5:26 pm - Reply

    I saw that bit on the news today. I don’t know how MPs get away with this behaviour with no attempt by the speaker to stop the hee-hawing. How there can be objections to a bit of hand-clapping compared with that ignorant, childish derision defies reason. All respect to Corbyn for staying calm. It just emphasised who is the real statesman.

    The other week cameron yet again brought up his son for no apparent reason, now his mother, who next?

    • Mike Sivier February 24, 2016 at 7:02 pm - Reply

      His aunt, perhaps? The one who’s campaigning against his cuts?

    • Brian February 25, 2016 at 12:02 am - Reply

      Let them cluck as much as they want, it’s clear and obvious that such displays are befitting their intellect.

  7. John February 25, 2016 at 8:47 am - Reply

    I may of commented on this before (and please don’t laugh), but I wonder if Cameron is deliberately behaving like this and getting personal (and enjoying himself), because he knows he isn’t running full term, and therefore doesn’t care about what people think about him ? If not that, is he just living on a knife-edge, hoping that people will believe the lies ??

  8. Andy February 25, 2016 at 10:37 am - Reply

    Despicable from Cameron.

    Good on corbyn for staying calm.

    They say ‘ the truth will out’. Cameron can only hide his true colours for so long…

  9. carol ann manifold February 25, 2016 at 6:26 pm - Reply

    cameron had no right to humiliate and embarres corbyn like that,he has no respect for anyone .what has clothes got to do with politics anyway.

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