It's official: PM went on longer

Helen Clark talked longer than Don Brash in three of five segments of Monday's television debate. Picture / Glenn Jeffrey

If you thought Prime Minister Helen Clark dominated Monday's television debate with National leader Don Brash, you were right.

And not just in terms of aggression. She talked for a total of 15 minutes and he for 13 minutes, a timed replay of the debate indicated yesterday.

That means Dr Brash had 13 per cent less time than her on the TVNZ debate, the first televised clash between the pair.

A debate the following night between Finance Minister Michael Cullen and National's Finance spokesman, John Key, on TV One's Close Up, was much more even.

Dr Cullen spoke for six minutes and Mr Key for five minutes, 30 seconds.

Commentators believed she not only dominated the time but made more effective use of it by either promoting her own policy or attacking National's.

Of the show's five segments, she overwhelmingly dominated time-wise in three of them - the initial segment on tax relief, health and education, and leadership.

They used almost equal speaking time in the segment on Treaty of Waitangi issues, which many commentators concluded Dr Brash had won.

Dr Brash dominated time-wise in only one segment, that on foreign policy and immigration, but much of that he spent on defending National's policy from attack by Helen Clark.

Helen Clark was relaxed about her performance in the often rowdy debate, she said last night through a spokesman.

"I set out to dominate him and I'm happy I achieved that." The aim was to use as much time as possible to get across her points.

The Cullen-Key debate was more civilised than their leaders', neither interrupting each other much until the last 30 seconds, when they both talked simultaneously with neither being understood.

Helen Clark and Dr Brash will meet again on September 15, on TV3.

The PM's spokesman said she had not decided how she would handle the next debate.