Questions to the Prime Minister

Last night I was watching the Prime Minister’s questions from the British House of Commons. This is an excellent display of the way a democracy really should work. The Prime Minister stands in front of the entire House of Commons and has to answer questions coming directly from the opposition parties’ leaders and other members of the House. The prime minister must respond without delay, thinking on his or her feet. This element of surprise allows opposition to try to catch the prime minister with an awkward question. The PM’s party can normally be relied upon to ask a `helpful' question which will allow the prime minister to tell the House about successful government policies. It is really quite amusing and informative. It would be akin to President Bush going in front of the House of Representatives and being asked questions directly from the Democrats. This really allows the public to see the policy differences between to the two parties (or in the UKs case, 3 main parties) and make an informed decision as to where they stand. It is much better than we have here in the U.S. where everyone tries to spin their position in the media and never actually meet face to face (in public at least_. The “Questions to the Prime Minister” actually takes place on Wednesdays and the discussion last week was about identification cards, which I found an interesting subject. C-SPAN reruns the Questions each Sunday night at 9 PM. If you want to see some dramatic television and also learn a little something, I suggest you check it out sometimes. (Oh, and you also get to hear some cool Scottish accents)