Sharpe's Opinion

Prize for best comment on the pre-Budget Report goes to David Jones MP

It was all heavy, serious stuff, with little humour, just real passion on both sides, the Conservative side in particular. Consensus is out of the window; battle lines have been drawn up and now, perhaps for the first time in a dozen years, Members know on which side of the ideological divide they stand. The next general election campaign started today and there is every sign that it will last a full eighteen months.

No, there wasn’t much humour this afternoon. A small spark flickered, however, when Brown and Darling walked into the chamber together toward the end of DWP Questions, just before the PBR began.

“Here come Boom and Bust,” called a Tory. A brief ripple of laughter rang out, but it was brief indeed, and rather wintry.

Yes, today was the day the next general election started.

Among the worst of blog comments (of the intellectual blogosphere, of course) was Tom Harris MP – who should probably stick to Doctor Who:

After today, one thing is certainly clearer: the choice that will be on offer at the ballot box next time round. ‘Do-nothing Dave’ and his politics of pessimism and cuts? Or Gordon Brown and the kind of politics that says it’s right to intervene in the economy to protect people’s jobs and homes?

Ah well. It must be hard to be a committed Labour MP without resorting to contradictory ideas and obscene simplifications, I suppose. Iain Dale thinks he almost did something nasty…

Update: Letters From A Tory gives out far more prestigious (and amusing) awards than me…