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PMQs - The verdict
This week's clash of party leaders was always set to be dominated by the Budget, but Michael Howard at least tried to score some other political points.
His opening salvo was an attack on the government's record on crime, referring to the Nottinghamshire police chief's weekend comments that his force could not cope with a rise in violent and firearms offences.
However even this quickly descended into a row about tax and spending, with Tony Blair responding that the Tories' plan for "£35bn public spending cuts" would slash police funding.
The Opposition front bench vigorously shook their heads but Howard chose not to rebut the charge, resigned perhaps to the fact that he cannot stop the prime minister misrepresenting his plans.
Charles Kennedy tried opening up a new flank on Iraq, which, much to the government's relief, has fallen off the agenda since the elections in that country at the start of the year.
The Liberal Democrat leader seized on Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi's remarks that his troops would begin coming home in September.
Blair said Kennedy had not heard the latest clarification from Rome this morning.
The UK would not set an arbitrary time scale for troop withdrawal, the prime minister added.
Kennedy replied archly that a timetable was exactly what many voters wanted and that the Lib Dems would set one. A score draw perhaps.
Howard then came back by picking up on the crisis in the Irish republican movement.
He accused the government of providing succour to Sinn Fein by giving it more attention than other political parties.
Blair said this was opportunism designed to "get a cheer" but not solve the problem.
Again there was no clear winner as the chancellor prepared to steal all the headlines anyway.
Labour backbenchers were at their most supine, asking "what action" Blair would recommend to their constituents at the election and not "like the Liberal Democrats, to killers the vote".
With the anti-terror bill now passed, dissent has clearly now died on the government benches, until May 6 at least.
The only comedic moment came from deafening groans on the government side as Lib Dem president Simon Hughes tried to ask about pensioners.
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