MORE FROM THE NORMAN YOKE

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The previously-mentioned section on Westminster Hour was followed by the weekly politics panel. The Conservatives and Lib Dems have taken a turn in missing a go, so this week it was Labour's turn not to be there (though Kevin McGuire is Labour through and through). So it was Charles Walker for the Conservatives, Jeremy Browne for the Lib Dems and Lord Pearson, leader of UKIP (hurray!).
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Norman Smith began this section as he ended the last section: "Charles Walker, let me start with you and just pick up on that last point by Kevin McGuire. While it's probably true to say that the Iraq Inquiry is bad news for Labour, it's hard to see it as particularly good news for the Conservatives." Talk about a glass half-empty!
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Smith then asked two questions to Jeremy Brown, neither of which asked anything specifically about the Lib Dems. Mr Brown's uninterrupted answers lasted 1 minute 1 second and 37 seconds respectively. That matters because when Smith then turned to Lord Pearson, asking him a question specifically about UKIP of course (its opposition to the war), the UKIP leader was interrupted within 13 seconds!!
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Smith moved quickly onto Tuesday's expected announcement that we are out of recession & began Tory-bating again: "I was struck last week when the job figures were out and unemployment was down for the first time in 18 months, the difficult position it seemed to put many Tories in because, on the one hand, you obviously had to welcome the fall in unemployment but at the same time it causes you a little bit of a problem, doesn't it, if the economy starts to turn just in time for the election?"
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Smith's immediate rudeness towards Lord Pearson continued. His second answer was swiftly interrupted and criticized: "But the problem with that argument is that you can't simply get that money back by pressing a lever. If we were to withdraw it would take time. So what are your proposals short of full withdrawal, because that is obviously a long-term objective?" Then Smith cut off one of his later answers to ask Mr Walker another question.
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The subject then changed to the child torturers of Edlington & David Cameron's comments on it. Guess who Smith asked first about this. Yes, the Lib Dem. That was an invitation to aim at an open goal - an invitation Mr Brown took gleefully. Here's Norm's question: "Jeremy Brown, one of the other things which has been percolating around this weekend is this whole idea of Broken Britain, which a speech by the Conservative leader suggesting that it wasn't, the case in Doncaster, wasn't an isolated case but symptomatic of something with deeper roots and more widespread. Erm, do you think he's right and do you also think he was right to cite the Doncaster case?" Mr Brown's anti-Tory answer went on for 1 min 11 secs uninterrupted!
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Smith finally turned to the burqa and back to Lord Pearson. You can probably guess what followed: A hostile question, then a hostile interruption. This in turn was followed by the second instance of Norman Smith cutting Lord Pearson off, as he was attacking Islam: "Ok, well let me bring the others in." Guess who he brought in first? "Jeremy Brown, what are your thoughts." Jeremy did not approve, and Smith let him express his disapproval of UKIP's position for over a minute.
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The interruption coefficients are clear:
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Lord Pearson - 0.9
Charles Walker -0.2
Jeremy Browne -0.1
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The whole thing was a travesty of any idea of BBC impartiality. Norman Smith should be banned from Westminster Hour. I never thought I'd say this but 'Bring Back Carolyn Quinn!'
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