PMQs (Sept 9th): Badenoch vs Burnham, Part 2
Statement 1
“The Prime Minister wants to talk about the past on defence spending, so let me refresh his memory and that of the House. I remember when he was the shadow Home Secretary, when the then Labour leader wanted us to leave NATO, disarm our nuclear deterrent and defund the Army, so I will not be taking any lectures from him.”
Statement 1a
“The Prime Minister wants to talk about the past on defence spending, so let me refresh his memory and that of the House.”
Facts
This is true, as he brought up the Conservatives’ past spending history, in which he claimed that defence spending went down.
Function
It sets up what she will talk about next, which is the history of defence spending.
Purpose
First, to make it clear that it is the Prime Minister who is taking the conversation toward the history of defence spending. Second, to signal that her next statements will be about the history of defence spending, as stated in “so let me refresh his memory and that of the House.”
Thoughts
I like the inclusion of statement 1a. She could have gone directly into statement 1b, but including statement 1a gives more weight to the statements that follow.
Statement 1b
“I remember when he was the shadow Home Secretary, when the Labour leader wanted us to leave NATO, disarm our nuclear deterrent and defund the Army, so I will not be taking lectures from him.”
Questions of fact
“I remember when he was the shadow Home Secretary.” This is not really testable, because we can only go by what she says. The next statement might be true, but the words “I remember” cannot be tested because we do not have access to her memory. She could have forgotten, and someone could have reminded her of his record. But I think we can say it is true, as she responds just seconds after him, so nobody could have told her anything.
Facts
- The Labour leader wanted the UK to leave NATO, disarm its nuclear deterrent and defund the Army.
- The current Prime Minister was once the shadow Home Secretary.
- Was it during his time as shadow Home Secretary that the Labour leader wanted to take these actions?
- The Prime Minister is from the Labour Party.
Function
The statement serves to set the record straight on a history that she has chosen to highlight, as there could be other instances where Labour governments have done more to improve defence spending. The statement sows doubt about the Prime Minister and shows that he does not have the moral high ground when it comes to his and his party’s track record.
Purpose
This statement helps show the room that both parties, Conservative and Labour, have done questionable things in the past. She does not mention anything from her own party, but that was raised in the Prime Minister’s earlier statement. The phrase “I will not be taking lectures from him” reasserts her dominance in the exchange.