It says a lot about a hyped-up TV debate when the most noteworthy thing about it happens outside the studio.
Boris Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn in virtual tie after heated debate
For whatever reason, Conservative Campaign Headquarters decided two minutes into last night’s ITV slog-fest was the perfect time for a Twitter rebrand – dubbing themselves FactcheckUK.
Tories criticised over ‘misleading’ Twitter account during election debate
Not to be confused, of course, with actual fact-checking websites like FullFact of FactCheckNI, one can only assume it was a bit of fun, like visiting Salisbury Cathedral’s 123-metre tower or Pizza Express in Woking.
In all seriousness, it was completely irresponsible for a verified Twitter account to abuse the “blue tick” of trust and pretend to be something it is not. Fake news is a scourge and main political parties should not take part in spreading it.
Tellingly, the slight could have gone unnoticed had it not named Boris Johnson as the debate winner. That’s not to say Jeremy Corbyn won either.
Despite the snub, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and her demands for a second referendum were all the two talked about in the opening salvo.
Mr Johnson said “the Union is the most important thing” while Mr Corbyn said he could not see a referendum in the early years of government – nothing new there.
It will be difficult for the SNP to complain Scotland was ignored in last night’s debate, from their perspective at least. In any case, last night proved the adage – better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak and to remove all doubt.
