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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
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| Brown has 'true grit' says Harman | Brown has 'true grit' says Harman |
| (19 minutes later) | |
| Prime Minister Gordon Brown "is a man of true grit and determination" who should not be under-estimated, Labour's deputy leader Harriet Harman has said. | Prime Minister Gordon Brown "is a man of true grit and determination" who should not be under-estimated, Labour's deputy leader Harriet Harman has said. |
| She spoke out after shadow foreign secretary William Hague wished her well in her "campaign to be rid of" the PM, saying the country was "sick of him". | She spoke out after shadow foreign secretary William Hague wished her well in her "campaign to be rid of" the PM, saying the country was "sick of him". |
| Ms Harman said the PM was the right man to take the UK through difficult times. | Ms Harman said the PM was the right man to take the UK through difficult times. |
| She said it would not be possible for her to replace him because Britain's men would want to "flee the country". | She said it would not be possible for her to replace him because Britain's men would want to "flee the country". |
| Ms Harman made the comments at question time, where she was filling in for Mr Brown who is on his way back from the G8 summit in Japan - and follow press reports she might be plotting a leadership bid. | Ms Harman made the comments at question time, where she was filling in for Mr Brown who is on his way back from the G8 summit in Japan - and follow press reports she might be plotting a leadership bid. |
| Liquid diet? | Liquid diet? |
| The exchanges came as Mr Hague mocked the prime minister's call for British households to stop wasting food, saying it was time government departments set an example. | The exchanges came as Mr Hague mocked the prime minister's call for British households to stop wasting food, saying it was time government departments set an example. |
| Isn't there something supremely ironic about being lectured about food waste by a prime minister who is past his own sell-by date? William HagueShadow foreign secretary | |
| Ms Harman agreed, but then made a jibe about Mr Hague's boast when Tory leader about how much he drank as a teenager. | Ms Harman agreed, but then made a jibe about Mr Hague's boast when Tory leader about how much he drank as a teenager. |
| She said that the last person Mr Brown would be taking dietary advice from was someone who thinks a "good diet is 18 pints a day". | She said that the last person Mr Brown would be taking dietary advice from was someone who thinks a "good diet is 18 pints a day". |
| Mr Hague hit back, to laughter: "None of that was ever wasted, I can assure you." | Mr Hague hit back, to laughter: "None of that was ever wasted, I can assure you." |
| He said it was "astonishing", given the prime minister's comments, that expenditure on hospitality in the Treasury, when he was chancellor, "more than trebled". | He said it was "astonishing", given the prime minister's comments, that expenditure on hospitality in the Treasury, when he was chancellor, "more than trebled". |
| "Isn't there something supremely ironic about being lectured about food waste by a prime minister who is past his own sell-by date?" he asked. | |
| "Isn't it yet another example of treating people like fools, of preaching prudence but practising profligacy, and waste - isn't this why the whole country is sick of the prime minister?" | "Isn't it yet another example of treating people like fools, of preaching prudence but practising profligacy, and waste - isn't this why the whole country is sick of the prime minister?" |
| He added: "I wish you well in your campaign to be rid of him." | He added: "I wish you well in your campaign to be rid of him." |
| Ms Harman retorted: "You shouldn't under-estimate the prime minister, who is a man of true grit and determination, who will see the country through the difficult circumstances." | Ms Harman retorted: "You shouldn't under-estimate the prime minister, who is a man of true grit and determination, who will see the country through the difficult circumstances." |
| She thanked Mr Hague for his "kind comments" about her own leadership chances, but added: "I'm afraid it wouldn't be possible because there aren't enough airports in the country for all the men who would want to flee the country." | She thanked Mr Hague for his "kind comments" about her own leadership chances, but added: "I'm afraid it wouldn't be possible because there aren't enough airports in the country for all the men who would want to flee the country." |