THE BBC's "flagship political debate programme" must be a glutton for punishment – because the latest line-up for Question Time has attracted even more criticism.
Last week it was accused of trolling, with Jacob Rees-Mogg, Ian Lavery, Rod Liddle, Polly Mackenzie and Ayesha Hazarika on the panel – here's an explanation of who they are.
Hazarika is Scottish, but the last Scottish politician to appear was on July 5 (Ian Blackford), so surely we're due another from the BBC?
We suspect you know the answer to that – a resounding NO. Once again, appearing from Canary Wharf, London, it's a panel that mocks any licence-fee payers.
So let's take a look at who we have:
- Conservative Justice Secretary David Gauke
- Labour MP and shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry
- Journalist and author Isabel Oakeshott, former political editor of the Sunday Times and political reporter for the Daily Mail.
- Entrepreneur Claude Littner, adviser to Alan Sugar on The Apprentice
- Spoken word performer George the Poet, who introduced coverage of this year's royal wedding
Here's Thursday's #bbcqt panel. Join us tomorrow at 10:45pm on @BBCOne and @bbc5live : pic.twitter.com/wRAAwIva71
— BBC Question Time (@bbcquestiontime) October 3, 2018
Oakeshott last appeared on Question time on June 14. Since June, she's made more appearances than Scottish politicians have.
Next week, the show will be heading to Edinburgh. We'll probably get four figures from the Scottish public sphere, and one from Westminster.
This, in the BBC's eyes, will represent balance. This must be their idea of equal partners.
But the truth is, their "flagship" show continues to show how England-centric this Union really is.
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