PMQ’s

[3offTheTee]

Simple question really: What is the point and what is the benefit for our Country?

Adittionally from a cost basis how much is it likely to cost on an annual basis?

 

[Lord Tyrion]

The point is to hold the PM to account. It fails completely in this, it is just a tribal shouting match. It is an embarrassment but politicians in their bubble think it is great.

In answer to your second question, the only cost would be additional security incurred when moving the PM to and from parliament when they otherwise would not be there.

 

[larmen]

It’s a sound bite contest and not much more. At least that’s how I feel about it.

 

[IanM]

There's a debate on another forum about desirable experience before being an MP.. to break the Uni, Researcher , MP cycle and get some folk who have had real jobs...

...I'm at my first Public Sector Client, and I see plenty of stuff I've not seen in 25 years in the Private Sector!

 

[Lord Tyrion]

There's a debate on another forum about desirable experience before being an MP.. to break the Uni, Researcher , MP cycle and get some folk who have had real jobs...

...I'm at my first Public Sector Client, and I see plenty of stuff I've not seen in 25 years in the Private Sector!

I think that is a really interesting suggestion. I think one of the reasons we currently have such a poor batch of politicians is that they are mainly part of this cycle and have no outside experience or understanding of what people are going through outside the bubble.

I remember going on a UKTI organised trip about 3-4 yrs ago and got friendly with a cracking couple of blokes who were experts in the field of disabled access, improvements to facilities etc. They were doing a lot of work in Sochi for the winter Olympics and were hoping to pick up business in Rio. They worked a lot with local councils and were hugely scathing about people at the top. "Why are they paid such huge sums?" "To win and retain talent" "But all of the Chief Execs in the country (2013/4) have only ever worked in the public sector! They are unemployable in the private sector, no one would want them, and none have been poached from private companies" I'm not sure anything has changed. Anyway, my point is MP's, local govt, policy makers etc need to break away from having a career purely in that field as they simply continue the mistakes of before as that is how they have been trained and brought through. They need fresh eyes.

One of the unpalatable truths about attracting new blood to be an MP is that the salary needs to increase. They try this every so often but the public outcry and self flagellation stops it from happening. So, we remain stuck the people IanM has mentioned.

 

[larmen]

What also doesn't help are so called 'save seats'. You have really incompetent MPs getting reelected because they are sitting on the right seat. And some become front benchers or ministers.

As an example, just look at America, it needed a pedofile to lose Alabama for the Republicans, and that just about. Not saying you have any MPs like that, just to demonstrate that in a save seat you can afford nearly anything, and incompetence is not even close to get you out.

 

[Doon frae Troon]

Interestingly having worked as a local authority PO in England and Scotland.

I found the English chief/top level officers to be pretty smart cookies and the MP's a bit dim.
It was the other way round with Scottish MSP's.

Broad generalisation of course.

Right now I see the PM is once again telling downright lies in replying to the Scottish MP's.
Are her advisors/writers really so dim to feed her this guff, or is she totally unaware as to what is going on outside of the Westminster bubble.

 

[rudebhoy]

The point is to hold the PM to account. It fails completely in this, it is just a tribal shouting match. It is an embarrassment but politicians in their bubble think it is great.

It really annoys me when politicians totally ignore the question they have been asked and instead come out with a prepared soundbite which has little or no relevance to the question.

PMQs is the worst example of this.

 

[User62651]

Maybe they should remove tv cameras like it used to be. Points scoring waste of time. Current PM is so locked into defensive mode she daren't answer a thing it seems.

Q: What time is it?
A: Cheese on toast!

 

[Deleted member 16999]

Interestingly having worked as a local authority PO in England and Scotland.

I found the English chief/top level officers to be pretty smart cookies and the MP's a bit dim.
It was the other way round with Scottish MSP's.

Broad generalisation of course.

Right now I see the PM is once again telling downright lies in replying to the Scottish MP's.
Are her advisors/writers really so dim to feed her this guff, or is she totally unaware as to what is going on outside of the Westminster bubble.

Maybe the PM is misreading who said what

 

[BubbaP]

If the link works, it highlights how much of it is used these days

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.bbc.co.uk/news/amp/uk-politics-42269771

 

[SocketRocket]

I do agree that we have far too many MPs with far too little experience of life in general, whether that be in industry, defense, health or whatever. I think this is a problem throughout politics and not just Westminister, there are so many career Management in Local Government/NHS/ Social Services Et-Al that have no concept of working at the coal face, I think it should be compulsory for state Managers to have a minimum shop floor experience. Career Politicians should be scrapped in favor of experienced people. A good start would be a scheme whereby a precursor to being accepted for a University Degree would be a three year apprenticeship that gave suitable underpinning experience in the subject. Degrees in Politics should be scrapped.

 

[Hobbit]

To a large extent I think PMQ has become a platform for soundbite politics and cheap points scoring. Within hours of standing up, both the PM and Corbyn have edited versions on Youtube and their party websites, which can skew the perspectives, whereas the SNP don't (creatively) edit their questions to the PM nor the answers.

In the main, I see it as poor shallow politics. There's little in the way of decent, statesman or stateswoman type politicians out there at present. Some good, competent politicians, but few who look to have that genuine concern for the country that goes beyond party politics.

 

[Imurg]

Does anyone actually sit down with a cuppa to watch PMQs....?
Seriously, some people need to get out more.
Go to a zoo and watch the chimps instead...

 

[Doon frae Troon]

On the other hand Scottish FMQ is just great.
It gives us a regular update on how utterly incompetent the Scots Lab/Con/Lib politicians are.

 

[Deleted member 16999]

On the other hand Scottish FMQ is just great.
It gives us a regular update on how utterly incompetent the Scots Lab/Con/Lib politicians are.

Do they get the facts correct?

 

[MegaSteve]

I do agree that we have far too many MPs with far too little experience of life in general, whether that be in industry, defense, health or whatever. I think this is a problem throughout politics and not just Westminster, there are so many career Management in Local Government/NHS/ Social Services Et-Al that have no concept of working at the coal face, I think it should be compulsory for state Managers to have a minimum shop floor experience. Career Politicians should be scrapped in favor of experienced people. A good start would be a scheme whereby a precursor to being accepted for a University Degree would be a three year apprenticeship that gave suitable underpinning experience in the subject. Degrees in Politics should be scrapped.

A big thumbs up from me :thup:...

 

[Hobbit]

On the other hand Scottish FMQ is just great.
It gives us a regular update on how utterly incompetent the Scots Lab/Con/Lib politicians are.

Do they get the facts correct?

Whilst I agree with Doon that FMQ does beat PMQ for quality I would suggest he needs to back up his claim about the incompetents... recent polls indicate Labour are back in second place and, in the main, would take seats from the SNP. This sees pro-independence parties in the Scottish parliament losing their majority 'v' those that support unionism... if the SNP is still losing support, following the loss of seats at the GE, who is the real incompetents?

 

[Doon frae Troon]

Whilst I agree with Doon that FMQ does beat PMQ for quality I would suggest he needs to back up his claim about the incompetents... recent polls indicate Labour are back in second place and, in the main, would take seats from the SNP. This sees pro-independence parties in the Scottish parliament losing their majority 'v' those that support unionism... if the SNP is still losing support, following the loss of seats at the GE, who is the real incompetents?

There are 56 Regional MSP's to add to the 73 elected MSP's.

Many of the Unionist supporting party regional MSP's made it to Holyrood with a resounding public vote of between 2000 to 5000 votes.
If it was a FPTP system like Westminster there would only be about a dozen opposition MSP's at Holyrood.

http://www.parliament.scot/ResearchBriefingsAndFactsheets/MSPs_by_Party_S5.pdf

Labour just ahead of the Tories in the recent polls but both still miles behind SNP.

 

[User62651]

Steady Doon...

We almost have unilateral consensus on a political thread - that PMQs is rubbish, don't spoil it.

Really enjoying the fact no-one's posting on the Article 50 thread currently, hopefully stays that way until after hols when we're all skint and miserable and argumentative again.

Maybe SILH will have forgiven his detractors by then too!