For some, this is a difficult question:
For Gordon Brown, it was a question too far. When the Prime Minister went on the parents’ networking site Mumsnet yesterday to do his first live webchat, he had answers ready on every topic he could imagine, from childcare vouchers to climate change.
But there was one question that he steadfastly refused to answer: what’s your favourite biscuit, Prime Minister? The question was put to Mr Brown no fewer than 12 times (which, as it happens, is the exact number of times Jeremy Paxman put his question to Michael Howard in the notorious 1997 Newsnight interview).
Time and again they asked what has become a staple question of Mumsnet interviews. “May I ask you what your favourite biscuits are?” said one mother. “What biscuit, Mr Brown, please, before you leave!” pressed another. Steadfast to the end, Mr Brown refused to answer. One member, MadameDefarge, said: “Maybe he needs to consult with his advisers on what would be the most vote-winning biscuit to admit to liking?”
The general concensus seems to be that Brown thought the question wasn’t important enough to answer, but I have a suspicion that he just was unable to make a choice. Should he go with the nation’s favourite? The Custard Cream.. Or should he go for the Kit Kat, his favourite nibble? And what about the dunking community?
I like to think he may have rung Mumsnet after he left.
“Er hello, it’s Jaffa cakes”.
“That’s a cake”
“Oh, it is?”
Which would just about sum him up. Indecision followed by a later weak decision.
UPDATE: Apparently he missed the question – twelve times. Brown tweets:
I missed Mumsnet question about biscuits: the answer is absolutely anything with a bit of chocolate on it, but trying v hard to cut down
