Prime Minister Gordon Brown
Gillian Duffy
The extract:
GD: You can't say anything about the immigrants because you're saying that you're... but all these eastern Europeans what are coming in, where are they flocking from?
GB: A million people have come from Europe but a million British people have gone into Europe. You do know that there's a lot of British people staying in Europe as well. Look, come back to what were your initial principles: helping people – that's what we're in the business of doing. A decent health service, that's really important, and education. Now these are the things that we have tried to do. We're going to maintain the schools so that we can make sure that people have that chance to get on.
Gordon Brown gets in car.
GB: That was a disaster... should never have put me with that woman. Whose idea was that?
Aide: I don't know, I didn't see her.
GB: Sue [Nye]'s, I think. Just ridiculous.
Aide: Not sure that they'll go with that one.
GB: They will go with that one.
Aide: What did she say?
GB: Everything, she was just a sort of bigoted woman who said she used to be Labour.
And so on...
The British press has predicted that this event will lead to the demise of Gordon Brown and the Labour party. But where on earth has this conclusion come from? It appears that the majority of the UK publications have reported this affair in a negative manner. From the extract of the conversation with Gillian Duffy, you can see that Brown attempts to placate her; he makes an attempt to encourage her to understand the immigration situation and in doing so certainly makes a very valid point.
From my point of view the only negative of this episode is the length to which Brown went to, to apologise to Mrs Duffy. I actually found this quite embarrassing. Surely the opinion of one person can't be THAT important? Shouldn’t the Prime Minister be exempt from grovelling? It feels as if the general election has created a little boy of one of the world’s most powerful men.
As the Independent noted today: "Mrs Duffy won't decide the election. You will". I certainly hope that the general public aren't quite that easily influenced. But as the final election debate demonstrated, it does not take much to sway public opinion.
I can understand that people will be disheartened to know just how two-faced he actually is, but who isn’t? We all have a face we show people we don't know very well - colleagues, clients, even to the Big Issue bloke and a more relaxed face to our friends, family and loved ones. He may be the Prime Minister and in the middle of fighting to retain this position, but he is also a HUMAN BEING.
In terms of immigration, what most people don't seem to realise (or those that DO know, are not willing to accept) is the extent to which we rely on the immigrant population. As Brown pointed out: the level of immigration may be high, but let's not forget the Brits living abroad.
The film "Dirty, pretty things" contains a brilliant line: "We are the ones who drive your cabs. We clean your rooms, and suck your cocks". The people that come over here (especially those of the "Eastern European" variety) do the jobs that none of us would want to do.
Mrs Duffy also complained about university fees. Maybe Gordon Brown should have told her about the extortionist fees paid by foreign students. According to a Guardian story last year, foreign students can pay up to £20,000 a year. Without this money the universities would be in a much more dire state that they're already in.
It is a shame that the Labour party has had to resort to relying on people like Duffy for votes. Where have all the sane people gone?
Of course, as much as this event has raised my estimation of Gordon Brown, I still won't be voting Labour.
Thursday’s election debate:
I believed this to be Gordon Brown’s most impressive performance since the start of these debates. And, why should it not have been? This is his field; this is his area of expertise. THIS was his time to shine!
Unfortunately, the polls showed a whole other story… The public put Cameron first, Clegg second and Brown last. Was I watching a totally different debate to the rest of the country? It certainly felt that way! It seems that Brown’s grovelling didn’t improve the British public’s opinion of him. If he had stood his ground, I think he would have certainly gained a few more points from various sectors of the population. I want a strong leader. A leader who is in control of the power we have entrusted him with. He should stand by his convictions and not give in to the media. That phone call should have sufficed. He lost so much precious preparation time, and for what? To appease a voter? Incidentally, she was portrayed by papers like the Times s an innocent, sweet grandmother, who did not mean any harm and was sorely wronged.
The Liberal Democrat leader’s performance certainly was not up to the standard to which we have become accustomed, so in my opinion, he deserved to come second. But, Cameron FIRST?
His face became more and more flushed as the debate progressed. He seemed flustered, confused and unable to form coherent sentences, to the point where he kept repeating himself.
My only trouble with Brown was his relentless petty attacks on Cameron. Brown had the knowledge, he was certainly in his element and therefore capable of standing his ground – so, what was the need for all those cheap shots?
The results of this debate just proves how easily people are swayed by the media. As a would-be journalist, I find this very exciting and yet terrifying about the power at my dispostition. It seems the pen certainly is mightier than the sword. But, surely, the media’s duty is to report the facts – to make the public aware of home and world affairs. NOT to influence. Black and white facts should be enough to help the public make an informed decision. During previous elections, the Sun claimed Labour’s win as their doing. Hence, the Independent’s posters declaring “Murdoch won’t decide this election; you will” (which resulted in James Murdoch storming into the Independent offices and throwing expletives at the editor!).The media should not be making or breaking elections. They should be reporting the lead up to it and then the results. The media has a duty to keep each and every person informed of the situation – they should not be making decisions for them.
The British Media = 1
Gordon Brown = 0
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