Brown finally agrees to face rivals on TV

Published on Saturday 3 October 2009 19:43

GORDON Brown last night said he would "relish" head-to-head televised debates with his rivals ahead of the next general election.

The Prime Minister is the last of the Westminster party leaders to agree to what would be the first such event in UK electoral history.

But Brown may not be able to test his wits against David Cameron of the Conservatives and Nick Clegg of the Liberal Democrats if the SNP succeeds in blocking any leaders' debate that did not feature Alex Salmond.

The SNP said yesterday that it would challenge the broadcasters' rights to go ahead with the debates without including the Scottish First Minister

Brown's announcement comes after BBC, ITV and Sky yesterday put forward a proposal to screen a series of three live debates during the election campaign next year.

Cameron and Clegg have already declared their readiness to take part in such debates. Brown finally gave his blessing to televised clashes in a letter published on the Labour Party's website.

He wrote: "It is right that we set the issues before the British people. Others can work out the details but what's important for the country is that there is a wide ranging series of television and radio debates with party leaders that are also able to devote attention to the central issues that matter to families: the economy, public services, how we strengthen our communities, and how we work with the rest of the world.

"It is right that there will be a strong focus on the leaders' debates and it is right that in a cabinet system of government that ministers and opposition ministers also debate the issues in a series of debates on television and radio too."

But any debate of UK party leaders shown in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland could fall foul of strict rules designed to ensure broadcasters are fair to all political parties.

Stewart Hosie MP – the Scottish Nationalists' election campaign coordinator – said: "The broadcasters must meet their obligations to audiences across the UK – and that means that any debates broadcast in Scotland must include Alex Salmond, and other relevant spokespeople should there also be subject debates.

We are obviously prepared to be flexible about options for the format, but the party of government in Scotland must on principle be included in any such debates."

However, Salmond, who sits in both Holyrood and Westminster, has said he will not stand for Westminster at the next general election.

Labour yesterday suggested a compromise that would involve a debate among Westminster MPs with Scottish seats. Jim Murphy, the Scottish Secretary, said he had written to his shadow, Tory MP David Mundell, Angus Robertson of the SNP and Alistair Carmichael of the Liberal Democrats to ask whether they would be willing to take part. "I believe we too should take our debate to the people," Murphy said.

Scotland on Sunday understands the SNP is unlikely to agree to take part in a debate with Murphy unless its problems with a televised UK leaders event is settled first. Nationalists last night said Canadian broadcasters had found a way of accommodating the leader of the PQ – the separatist party for the province of Quebec – in a debate of federal party leaders.

UK politicians have steered away from US-style presidential television debates ahead of elections. Former Labour leader Tony Blair and Tory prime minister John Major failed to agree on the terms for such debates ahead of the general election in 1997. A general election must be held by 3 June next year.