BBC Question Time has - once again - been accused of deliberately planting anti-Jeremy Corbyn members of the public in its audience.
This week’s Corbynista conspiracy was prompted by a passionate rant from a woman imploring Labour’s Angela Eagle to push her leader to take on the Tories over Brexit negotiations.
Another woman in the audience had asked:
“In light of David Davis’s admission that no economic assessment has been carried out on the effects of a hard Brexit, should the triggering of Article 50 be delayed?”
- BBC Question Time audience member
Eagle responded: “We have a Prime Minister who’s gone round the country saying that no deal is better than a bad deal but they haven’t actually done their basic homework. It seems that David Davis is from the Boris Johnson school of doing your homework - don’t do any of it and hope you can bluff your way through.
“And then following the budget and this screeching, embarrassing U-turn on National Insurance contributions the Chancellor has put us through this week, are we going to let these people do the Brexit negotiations that are far, far more difficult than the Budget.”
At this point, and without waiting for a microphone to reach her, the woman in the stripy top launched into her astonishing tirade.
She said: “He needs to stand up on a Wednesday and say something. He doesn’t do anything!
“He stands there and everyone turns off! You’ve got mobile phones, you’ve got everything! No one take any notice of him.”
Dimbleby interjected: “Who are you talking about?”
She continued: “About Corbyn. He doesn’t stand up and do anything. You’re saying there ‘stand up to Theresa May’ but you’ve got your own leader and he doesn’t do anything! I know you don’t like him but you’re going to have to do something!”
The speech was met with rousing applause from the rest of the audience.
Eagle said with a smile: “Well, I don’t think anyone can accuse me of not having an opinion on this.”
Rather than accept that people may have legitimate concerns about Corbyn, many of his fans instantly accused the BBC, and Eagle, of planting the woman in the audience.
Corbyn was heavily criticised this week for presiding over one of the biggest missed opportunities in House of Commons history for his response to the massive Budget U-turn by the Tories on National Insurance.
There was huge pressure on Corbyn to score an open goal when he sparred with Theresa May at Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday.
Just 20 minutes before they met, the Government announced it was dropping a rise in National Insurance after a rebellion by Tory MPs who complained it breached the party’s 2015 manifesto.
Corbyn had started by calling the Budget U-turn a “a bit of chaos” but failed to actually ask a question, instead saying the Tories should “thank ... all those who have pointed out just how bad this increase should [sic] be”.
He had six chances to ask questions...
The BBC has been contacted for comment but is yet to respond.