David Cameron concerned over TV debates format

Conservative leader David Cameron has expressed fears that the public may be left disappointed by the three televised election debates. The politician claimed that strict rules which have been put in place for the historic broadcasts could lead to slow and sluggish discussions, The Guardian reports.

Cameron will this evening go head-to-head with Prime Minister Gordon Brown and the Liberal Democrats’ Nick Clegg in UK TV’s first ever leaders’ debate. The 90-minute transmission, which is to concentrate on domestic affairs, will air on ITV1 from 8.30pm.

Discussing the event, David Cameron said: “I do worry that we may have ended up with a format that’s going to be a bit slow and sluggish. So I may be wrong.

“I hope the public won’t feel short-changed. I think we’ve got to make sure the public feel they’re getting their questions answered.” However, Sky News’s political editor Adam Boulton – who is chairing the second debate next week – insisted that the Conservatives had been actively involved in creating the format.

Boulton said: “Cameron needs to be careful. The rules he is attacking are those insisted on by the party negotiators during their months of bargaining with the broadcasters.”

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