The first PMQs of the new Parliament, if not quite new Government, began with a Tory MP seemingly blaming Corbyn for someone urinating outside her constituency office door.
Not sure you can directly blame Corbyn that somebody took a leak outside your office, but that is what she was trying to allude to. Desperate times and all that.
So how do we apportion blame? Well the rejuvenated Labour leader had a few ideas today.
However, he began by praising the work of the Hillsborough campaign, especially the MPs Andy Burnham and Steve Rotherham to secure criminal charges, that have finally been brought.
Then Corbyn turned to the Grenfell disaster and demanded to know the timetable for the upcoming inquiry. The impression given was that this better not turn into another three-decade wait for justice.
The PM said that due to the one hundred per cent failure rate, local authorities should assume that whatever is wrapped around their building should be torn down. How many people have been living in death traps and for how long wasn’t mentioned, but it must run into thousands if not more.
The PM then seemed to push the blame onto councils rather than central government, for these safety failings, but Corbyn wasn’t about to let this slide.
He blamed the disaster squarely on austerity. Corbyn said that due to cuts to Local Authority expenditure, you get fewer building control inspectors, fewer fire fighters and a general reduction in safe living conditions. The Labour leader said that the disregard for working class communities had led to this tragedy.
The Tory benches were in uproar, sometimes it is hard to swallow the truth; especially knowing you are to blame.
Various Tory MPs, as they always have, warned about rail union strikes, the UK turning in Venezuela under Corbyn and stopping the 50,000 immigrants flooding through Dover etc.
However, you got the sense that inside and outside the chamber, people are not listening to these arguments anymore.
These assumed “dangers” were not responsible for Hillsborough, Grenfell or the general collapse of the public sector. It is time to take responsibility, accept the blame and move aside.
Sycophantic question of the day
Suella Fernandes, Con, who showered praise on the Tory stronghold of Fareham and how May is the best person to deal with Brexit. She wants a job on the front bench, but maybe just to get away from Philip Davies, Con, who she had the misfortune be sitting next to today.
Winner
*oh Jeremy Corbyn*
[Full Clip] Prime Ministers Questions
[Full Clip] Prime Ministers Questions #PMQs #UKParliament #Labour #Conservative #TheresaMay #JeremyCorbyn
Posted by Parliament Today UK on Wednesday, 28 June 2017
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