Chris Mason: Will Burnham find PMQs as 'nail biting' and 'nerve wracking' as Blair did?
Prime Minister Andy Burnham faces his first Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons after a delayed start to his term. The article explores the intense pressure of the weekly ritual, drawing comparisons to the experiences of former PM Tony Blair.
Why it matters
Examines the transition of power and the high-stakes nature of parliamentary scrutiny in the UK political system.
Figure caption, Watch: Key moments from Burnham's first Commons speech as PM on Tuesday
Political editor Published 11 minutes ago The weekly ritual that sits at the heart of Westminster's public image beckons, the half an hour or so of verbal jousting at Prime Minister's Questions (PMQs).
Prime ministerial memoirs tell the stories of how central a moment it is in the week of any occupant of 10 Downing Street.
Sir Tony Blair wrote that "PMQs was the most nerve wracking, discombobulating, nail biting, bowel moving, terror inspiring, courage draining experience in my prime ministerial life, without question".
Now, for the first time, it is Andy Burnham's turn to feel those nerves. And yet, curiously, the questions at lunchtime may well feel like a minor extension to the three and a half hours of questions he faced on Tuesday afternoon.
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