GAME PLAN The final Prime Minister’s question time before an election is always highly charged. In it are rehearsed the essence of the campaign arguments, usually wrapped around a beautifully crafted soundbite.

But these final confrontations across the despatch box b ear far greater signifance than that. They mark the end of an era for the tortured relationship between Prime Minister and leader of the Opposition.

So the final pre-election clash tends to distil the essence of previous confrontations between the party leaders across the floor of the House. If these have been bitter and personal, the final exchanges will be bitter and personal.

In 1997, for instance, we saw Mr Blair haranguing John Major over cash for questions: “It will leave a stain on the character of his Government that will be erased only by a new Government with a fresh mandate, who will restore confidence in our public life for good.”

Mr Major responded furiously with: “The stain, if stain there will be, is upon a Labour front bench that has smeared and smeared and smeared again.” Relations between Mr Howard and Mr Blair, both barristers, have been acrid. When Mr Howard became Tory leader 18 months ago, Mr Blair rated him as a Parliamentary performer as he had not his predecessor, Iain Duncan Smith.

If Mr Blair’s expectations were high, they were dwarfed by those of the Conservative Party. At first, Mr Howard proved its judgment right, regularly bettering the Prime Minister at question time. But over the past couple of months, the Tory leader has gone off the boil, partly because he seemed to run out of new things to say — but mostly because Mr Blair learnt how to deal with his attacks. Until yesterday.

TACTICS Mr Howard went straight for the jugular, reminding the Chamber that Mr Blair had promised not to raise national insurance contributions before the last election: “In the words of the Chancellor, why should people ever believe you again?”

There were two mischiefs here. The first was that Mr Blair never quite said in the run-up to the 2001 poll that he wouldn’t raise national insurance. In fact much was made, during the campaign, of the fact that he refused to rule it out.

The second mischief was that nobody has it on the record that the Chancellor ever told the Prime Minister he could never believe him again, although Gordon Brown has never convincingly denied it.

Mr Blair was terrible. He ignored the question altogether and instead attacked Conservative policy on the NHS.

The Tory leader repeated the trick, reminding Mr Blair of broken promises on top up and tuition fees. Again Mr Blair ignored it, this time criticising Mr Howard’s record in government.

And so it went on, through immigration and anti-social behaviour, until Mr Howard suddenly suggested to the Prime Minister that they find out what Labour MPs “really think of you. How many of them are putting your photo on their election addresses? Hands up!”

And the fools did it. Labour MPs put their hands up. But only half a dozen or so. The trick worked beautifully. Tory MPs jeered as Mr Howard roared: “Doesn’t that tell you all you need to know about what they really think of you?”

Mr Blair was awful. Labour MPs behind him were silent and flat.

By the time Mr Howard accused the Prime Minister of “claptrap” Tory backbenchers, by contrast, were cheering the House down.

And so to the soundbite: “After eight years of Labour government we’re locking up teachers not yobs, our voting system resembles that of a banana republic, and pensioners who can’t find an NHS dentist are reduced to pulling out their own teeth.

“Isn’t there a clear choice at this election — rewarding you for eight years of broken promises, or choosing a government that will take action on the things that matter to hard working Britons?”

Mr Blair went on and on and on and on about the choice confronting the electorate. Who would have thought it? It was all sound and no bite.

SCORE. Win for Michael Howard

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