The second debate: Live blog

By Alex Smith / @alexsmith1982

So, who won this week?

I thought Gordon Brown was very strong tonight. He seemed more comfortable in the setting, was knowledgeable and statesmanlike as you’d expect on matters of international affairs and diplomacy. His “get real, Nick, get real” line was the highlight of the debate, and with his “squabbling at bath time” line he also managed to crowbar in a couple of pre-prepared jokes with relative ease. On Afghanistan, he was humble and sombre. And he was able to hinge back to the real issues of the election easily, on jobs, the recovery and crime.

David Cameron, meanwhile, seemed like a tired leader. He made up policy on the spot — the Tories will now keep free eye tests for pensioners, which they had not pledged to do in their manifesto — and was hesitant on a few occasions. He seemed angry, which in moderation is probably a good thing — and he did keep it in moderation. But he did come across as a man under huge pressure, and was never able to land a killer blow.

Nick Clegg was good again he was never going to live up to last week’s revelatory performance with expectations so high this time out. The nasty right wing press attacks seemed not to have thrown him off his game too much, but, although I was paying close attention, I can’t recall anything specific on policy that he said. So any potential consolidation of his bounce tonight could come out in the wash.

22:15 More video, this time of Gordon questioning Nick Clegg’s nuclear policy, saying “Get real, Nick, get real.”

22:10 Here’s a video of David Cameron tired and hesitant:

22:00 Channel 4 News’ instant poll results are: Nick Clegg: 52% Gordon Brown: 31% David Cameron: 17%.

21:55 The next instant poll re: the winner of the debate is ComRes/ITV: Clegg on 33%, Brown 30% Cameron 30%.

21:50 The instant YouGov poll for the Sun on the debate winners shows: Cameron 36%, Clegg 32%, Brown 29%

21:50 Speaking to Sky News, Alastair Campbell has said:

“On the really big issues, Gordon won it. Next week might be harder for Gordon because the expectations might be harder. This week, Cameron needed a knockout blow, and he didn’t deliver it.”

21:40 Here’s the Guardian’s tracker for the final part of the debate:

21:40 Over at our debate watch party, here’s our bingo winner with her prize: PLP minutes, signed by John Prescott and Neil Kinnock.

21:30 David Miliband says Cameron and Clegg had “absolutely no answers at all”, while Gordon was in “complete command, very impressive indeed…David Cameron didn’t show up for the debate”.

21:30 And his “two young boys squabbling at bath time” line, also via Political Scrapbook:

21:25 Here’s Gordon Brown’s opening statement, courtesy of Political Scrapbook:

21:20 Here’s the Guardian’s opinion tracker for the second third of the debate:

21:15 Peter Mandelson has just released the following statement:

“In the first 45 minutes on foreign policy, for the second week running, Gordon Brown won on what matters – substance, judgement, leadership and the experience to lead Britain into the future. Gordon Brown was clearly the most energised of the three leaders. He relishes the return to debating policy. Both Nick Clegg and David Cameron sounded tired.

As the questions demonstrated, there are serious challenges in the months and years ahead:

* Issues of war and peace in Afghanistan, the Middle East and around the world

* Tackling climate change

* Stopping Iran getting the bomb

* Working with our European partners

* Building strategic relationships with the emerging powers such as India and China

In foreign policy every decision or indecision has consequences. There’s no escaping that. One wrong word or wrong decision – from Trident to Somalia, being soft on our enemies or careless with our allies – results in Britain being less strong and less secure with less influence.

That’s why this debate is crucial to the decisions about the direction our country has to make. It matters because inexperience risks our economy, our environment and our future.

Foreign policy is about tough choices and the tough action which follows them. Gordon Brown showed he is the man to take those tough decisions both now and into the future.

With Nick Clegg’s anti-Americanism on the one hand, and David Cameron’s anti-Europeanism on the other, Gordon Brown showed he is right choice for Britain.

Gordon Brown clearly won the exchanges on foreign policy, especially on maintaining the nuclear deterrent and Nick Clegg’s naïveté in wanting the UK to scrap the bomb while letting Iran and North Korea get one.”

21:10 Gordon Brown says “David, you’re a risk to the economy. Nick’s a risk to our security, but you’re a risk to our economy.”

21:05 Labour have released a new poster on Gordon Brown’s attack line of the Tories’ Big Society plans at home and Little Britain policies abroad. Hat tip @MirandaSky.

21:00 Cameron says “we’ll keep the bus pass, pension credits, winter fuel allowance.”

20:55 Grace, an audience member asks whether £54 a week is enough for a pensioner. Gordon replies, “No, Grace, it’s not”, before talking about the pensions credit, the free TV licenses and the winter fuel allowance. I want to give dignity and security to all pensioners in society”.

20:40 The Guardian’s Andrew Sparrow is also live blogging the debate, and providing the opportunity for people to express their feelings on each leader’s performance as the discussions move forward. Here’s where they are at 20:40:

20:40 Gordon is very strong on world religions working together, speaking with real conviction.

20:35 Here’s a video of the difference between David Cameron and his MEPs in Europe on gay rights, climate change and more:

20:35 David Cameron speaks a good game on climate change, but as Tim Montgomerie wrote: “You scratch almost any backbencher and you find they are sceptical and I know of six shadow cabinet ministers who are sceptical about the economic consequences of a low-carbon policy.”

20:30 My verdict so far? I’ve tweeted: Very strong first third by Gordon. Last week he was best in the middle third. Cameron not too impressive, Clegg crowded out so far.

20:25 Brown is not so much on the attack, as he is more comfortable with being hard on his opponents on policy. “I say to you, Nick, get real.”

David Cameron has now said “I agree with Gordon twice.” I wonder why he’s going for that strategy; it didn’t work well for Brown last week. Even Eric Pickles is tweeting “I agree with Gordon”. Bizarre, but surely part of a pre-decided strategy?

20:25 Kevin Maguire has tweetd: “Cam “blown away” by professionalism of troops in Afghanistan. Poor choice of phrase.”

20:20 Gordon is looking at the camera, speaking to the TV audience, much more tonight. That’s a good ploy. He was too eager to speak to the studio audience last week, to give a speech. Speaking about the forces on the frontline, Brown is sombre and honest.

20:15 Nick Clegg says Cameron’s Tories have joined “a bunch of nutters, homophobes, anti-Semites, climate change deniers.” Brown responds saying Clegg and Cameron are like his two boys at bathtime. Ouch.

20:05 Gordon is hooking his major lines back to the economic recovery, trying to show the importance of the British role in Europe. He’s started very strongly. Cameron returns to “the same old politics” line.

20:05 Brown says there are three million reasons we’re in the EU: jobs. A good line. He’s now speaking about how he worked with Europe and America on the economic crisis. I’m listening to him as I type. He sounds superb. I wonder what it looked like.

20:05 Clegg says while Europe is too bureaucratic and isn’t perfect, “we are stronger together”

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19:55 Here’s John Prescott speaking at our joint debate watch party in London:

19:50 Anthony Painter’s seat predictor before the debate shows: Con 316 (-4) Lab 223 (+2) LD 78 (+2).

19:50 I’ve just received a press release from the European Council on Foreign Relations, about their new report. The release says “Governments across Europe are concerned that a government led by David Cameron could prove deeply Eurosceptic.” The report on the whole is about the likely UK relations with Europe of a variety of potential general election results.

Download it here.

19:40 On Sky News, Alastair Campbell says

“I haven’t found the public thinking Nick Clegg put on this Barack Obama style performance. David Cameron will come back stronger tonight. But what we’ll see is that when it comes to the big issues, Gordon is a far better Prime Minister than any of these other characters tonight. It’s about policies for the future of Britain, it’s about substance, it’s about serious issues. The reason David Cameron is in trouble is that he thought it was all about body language and presentation, but it’s not.”

19:40 And another. One guy is making calls to voters while propping up the bar:

19:40 The first photo of the phone banking at the debate watch party is with us:

Last week, over 100 people joined us to campaign with Harriet Harman, and we made hundreds of calls to voters in Tooting.

19:35 Next up, the odds for tonight. Ladbrokes puts Clegg at 4/5 to top YouGov’s post-debate polling of which of the three leaders will most impress in tonight’s debate. David Cameron is second favourite at 5/4 with Gordon Brown way down at 8/1. Punters do not fancy Gordon to win this one, which could provide an early boost for the opposition parties. Then again, the expectations game is an important one. Will Nick Clegg be able to live up to last week’s performance? I think David Cameron will be much rougher with him tonight, and Gordon may not be quite so “agreeable” either.

19:30 Let’s start with the new polls. The YouGov tracker has been released early tonight, and is showing Con 34% (+1), Lab 29% (+2), LD 28% (-3). On a uniform swing, those numbers are likely to deliver a hung parliament, with Labour as the largest party on 279 seats, 47 short of a working majority, the Tories on 253 seats and the Lib Dems on 87.

Tonight, alongside the joint LabourList, Left Foot Forward, New Statesman and Liberal Conspiracy LiveChat and the debate watch party hosted by LabourList, LGBT Labour, Compass, Progress, London Young Labour and the Young Fabians, I’ll also be live blogging the second TV debate on international affairs.

You can take part in the LiveChat below, where we’ll be bringing together all the news, views and tweets from the progressive spectrum.

If you’re on the hop in London, why not join the crowd gathering at the debate watch party and help out with some phone banking. It’s at the Old Crown, 33 New Oxford Street.

Otherwise, stay posted above and below as the evening goes on for all the news and views.