T.May on Newsnight

theresa is not here at the moment please leave a message....

The sad thing is that whatever organizing ability she may have in private meetings, the job of a Prime Minister these days includes being comfortable and confident in front of the public and the media and Mrs. May is a disaster at the job. It is hard to remember such a fall from grace in a single month although Gordon Brown came close.

I suppose focusing on the leader's personality diverts attention away from the real issues.

David Blunkett said when he was a minister that handling the media over his personal life was taking up more time than doing the job.

This constantly criticising politicians over matters of image, simply leads to us getting the type of politicians we deserve.

Also, she was the one who made the election campaign about people rather than policies, with the vacuous "strong and stable" meme and various personal attacks on Corbyn. I'd accept the validity of some of those attacks, as it happens (by no means all of them) but you reap what you sow.

This constantly criticising politicians over matters of image, simply leads to us getting the type of politicians we deserve.  Dr C

I agree.

I'm not interested in smooth talking clones of each other. PR types, actors who put on a show in front of camera but who lack any substance or values. Blair and Cameron spring to mind.

In now way am I defending May's campaigning style or her politics but the criticism of her over her visit to Grenfall is ludicrous. By all means look at her record as Home secretary and question the Tory led council but to attack her for being wooden is totally missing the point.

Wooden isn't the point at all. She chose to 'answer' questions on a tragedy in the way she did in the run up to the election. ie not answering them.

If you do not know I suspect me telling you won't change that.

Reassurance? From a politician?

I dont believe its just the PM  here that is under pressure , its the whole of the Tory team that is under the microscope , she perhaps unfairly has taken a lot of stick whilst the others have hid behind her

The tories are clearly keeping her front and centre so she takes all the heat. Right and proper; she's the PM, ultimately she's in charge, she called the election and she was happy to make it all about her rather than the party and to stick to her lines rigidly with absolutely zero charisma.

Issue for the party though is how much they get tainted in the meantime. I read a good piece a few days ago about how they've lost their USP. They're supposed to be conservative. The political version of putting your money in the building society rather than investing in shares.
They'd be the ones telling scare stories about what you'll get if you don't vote for them. Coalition of chaos, fiscally irresponsible etc etc. Thing is though they've been anything but conservative the last few years. They nearly broke up the union, have taken us out of Europe, may yet still break up the union, though N Ireland's now more of a concern than Scotland, and now - after calling an election where a landslide seemed odds on - they're struggling to form a government and need a bunch of terrorist-sympathising flat earthers to get it over the line.

Fact is, they're as risky a proposition as the rest now and given the choice why not vote for the party willing to give you more if the risk's the same.

Their image as the safe pair of hands is shot to pieces. Every time someone from the DUP speaks now it will be made to look like official government words and besides all that the party isn't exactly bursting with PMs in waiting. And also Brexit will be a huge factor. There will be a clear fight between appointing a quitter or remainer depending on which way the members are swinging I reckon. But who in the Cabinet looks a likely PM - Boris, Rudd, Gove, Davis? They need someone with a bit of charisma now who can connect, particularly with younger, working class people and I think only Davidson might come close to fitting that bill.