By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor
It was stand in day, so our esteemed chancellor and Angela Eagle stepped in to take the reins, but both became whipping boys for the same issues that effect Cameron and Corbyn at every PMQs, who I’ve labelled “Camcor’, and I hate myself for it.
Eagle argued that the Conservative are split down the middle over the EU, Osborne quite rightly pointed out that the Labour Party is hardly a picture of unity. Osborne referred to Labour members as “rats deserting a sinking ship,” harsh…Possibly fair.
So in their own peculiar way they confirmed that both of their parties are a mess. Eagle did manage to get Osborne to agree with Len McCluskey rather than the Brexit supporters in his own party, which raised a smile.
After they both arrived at the conclusion that both parties are in disarray, Eagle went on the attack about Osborne’s minuscule tax demand from Google, when the French were raiding the search engine’s office in Paris.
Physically raiding a website sounds slightly absurd to me, like arresting polluted air coming out of a factory, but I may be proven wrong.
You can argue about how much you hate Tories: fracking under your house, cutting disabled people’s benefits or sending you to a food bank for your Sunday dinner – indeed, any of those other unpleasant things they do from time to time – but they actually have started to deal with global companies avoiding tax in the UK.
Yes they have done a rubbish job, but Labour did literally nothing. So when a Labour MP tries to use the issue as a stick to beat the Tories with, it sounds hollow, like they are using cheap plastic water pipe to inflict the damage.
That aside the mutiny/open warfare (delete as appropriate) from Tory MP “Brexiteers,” (I won’t lie, I like the phrase, if not the sentiment) is astounding. So I am going to keep a watch on them at PMQs leading up to the EU referendum.
These were today’s Brexit moans, from the sublime to the ridiculous.
Brexiteer watch
Richard Drax – “If we vote remain I’ll have to email Junker to ask a question at the next PMQs.” Give over.
Phillip Davies – “Is the Chilcott report delayed because voters don’t want to see an example of total political failing leading up to EU referendum” No it’s an independent report (that was the whole point) the government has no power to publish it.
Anne Main – “If we remain where will the extra 1.3 million migrants go, we will have to build on the green belt, to provide these people homes and services they will desperately need.” No the Green belt is protected and won’t be built on. After the session she made a point of order, where she said she was getting a “talk to the hand,” response from the government.
Bernard Jenkins – “It is illegal to keep Pro EU information on Government websites in the purdah period leading up to the referendum.” They will take it down as soon as the period beings.
William Cash – Angry Bill demanded to know why 44% of our trade is with the 27 other states and we run a huge deficit, while the Germans make a huge profit, “Is this a bad deal?” Don’t the Germans just have a better mixed economy?
Sycophantic question of the day
Literally none (see above)
Winner
The mutiny with the bounty that keeps on giving; Google not the “Brexiteers.”