Ed Miliband likened to lizard for bizarre way he licks his lips

LONDON - Ed Miliband, leader of Britain’s opposition Labour Party, has been has been likened to a lizard because of his bizarre way of repeatedly licking his lips to stay calm when giving a speech.

Body language experts said that his ‘lizard tongue’ helps him focus on his words and appear self-assured and methodical at the despatch box.

They studied the actions of three political leaders and found Miliband to be the most pensive, Nick Clegg the most passionate, while David Cameron came out on top for being charismatic and engaging.

“Watching the videos of Miliband, we notice he moistens his lips with his tongue-we call this the ‘lizard tongue’. Research on this gesture suggests that when someone does this, it is a way of pacifying or giving oneself strokes,” the Daily Mail quoted Alex Grinder of the language firm Ascot Barclay Group, as saying.

“He is extremely cognitive, in other words he speaks very much from his head and thoughts. Ed stands with his weight on both feet and this helps to create a level of credibility, he is balanced and grounded,” he said.

‘We see the hands coming together in prayer a lot and this gesture allows him to reconnect with his thoughts. When he does so his feet are centred, this balanced posture together with his light touch of the lectern suggests that he is confident,” he said.

However, analysis of Miliband’s first speech to the Labour Party Conference in 2010 revealed subtle differences in his body language when referring to certain MPs, which could be evidence of future problems for his leadership, added Grinder. (ANI)