MNHQ Group 4

How well or badly do you think the party leaders could manage your household finances effectively? Imagine the party leaders had to live on your family budget, which do you think would cope best/worst? Why? What problems would they encounter?

First of all David Cameron?
And then Nick Clegg?
And then Ed Miliband?
What about another party leader you know of (or one you think should/ could be a party leader) - please name them and then say: how well or badly do they do on this aspect?

I'm not sure that I can separate them tbh. I dont think any of them have a real idea of juggling finances, money, paying bills and running everything. Budgetting for changes and rainy days, whilst spending wisely. Running cash and card and credit.

As for living on my budget? Pah! I mean, I am by no means poor. I am lucky to live in substidised social housing, which is the right "size" for my family. I am lucky to work, and get school holidays off. i am lucky to recieve ctc, wtc, cb. I receive minimal Child Maintenance, and of course DLA for one child. I get paid CB and DLA every 4 weeks, tax credits every week, wages once a month. I juggle, I budget, I check my bank account daily. I just cant imagine that any of these people have a real idea what it is like to have to log into your internet banking daily. To think "oh shit, I've overspent on a birthday cake, have I enough in my rent account to cut this weeks payment" To realise your electric has 3p on so you stick the emergency on.

I have been on the complete poverty breadline and would no way say I am now. But that is part because I budget, budget, juggle, budget, and scrimp on some things others would say were essentials. But I do not think any of these guys could do it, they have always had money somehow. And I think thats why I struggle to really trust any of them, their words have no backing.

I would love, absolutely love, to have one of them or all of them in my life for a day. 2 days. Even 3 hours. To go through my home. To go through my life. My budgets. To see that some of us down the bottom arent here by choice, we work bloody hard and we make up a big group of their voters. And they need to open their eyes more.

Answering second set of questions:

1. So, these days how well or badly do you think the current main party leaders are doing on understanding the issues and concerned facing women like you.

First of women like me I am taking to be women who are working single parents, studying at degree level, living in social housing, with a disabled child. There arent many of us, but thats what I am basing it all on.

First of all David Cameron? - He seems very old school, basing women's jobs as "pocket money" and single mothers as teenagers with 2 kids by two fathers, being a drain on society. He just cant seem to shift the perception of 2013 single parenthood. He'd much rather reward someone and trap someone into a bad marraige than realise times have changed. I worry with the marriage tax gain and the child benefit changes that women will feel trapped to stay in very dangerous, or even just sad, marraiges.

And then Nick Clegg? - I have very little opinion one way or the other tbh, as I know very little about him. I did dislike the student tutition fee raise, but thats all I can judge.

And then Ed Miliband? - He seems most open minded tbh, but thinks again the issue is with teenage parents and labour need to target those. They dont think of the bigger picture. And his idea is to throw money where there isnt any. :-/

2. and how well or badly do you think they make sure or take account of women being heard in their party and in politics generally? First of all David Cameron? And then Nick Clegg? And then Ed Miliband?

I honestly dont follow politics enough to comment. To me, politics still seems to be an Old Boys Club. Cigars in the bar without women after supper kind of shite.

3. Finally for now - which party - if any - do you trust the most to look after the interests of women? Why? And which do you trust the least? And why? I'm going out on a limb with Lib Dem. I'm scarily warming to them, and would be interested in reading up more on their policies. Least? Conservatives, they just dont seem to have changed their views and opinions for 30 years. I almost feel like DC would pat me on the head and say "Thats nice dear"

Management of household finances
Priorities is the key word here. While I appreciate the difficulties Cameron and Osborne have had to juggle the UK budget/deficit, I seriously question their priorities. As Conservatives they will always have very different priorities to myself and there's no way I'd want to trust them to make good choices for my household finances.
Miliband is much closer to me ideologically, so I'd likely have a little more trust in him.

Managing on my budget
Well, all 3 have come from wealthy, highly privileged backgrounds, so I don't think any of them would be particularly happy with managing on my measly income. However, I have to credit the 3 of them with a modicum of intelligence and nous, so hopefully they'd know how to get the most for their money. I'm sure they could all manage for a week, even a month, but a year.... I don't think so.

managing my household finances gosh, I wouldn't trust any of them with my money! I have no debt aside from my mortgage and I'm keen to stay that way. I save, I don't claim any benefits whatsoever and we both an pensions. I dare say I would earn some sort of gold star but I'd like to think they'd look at our salaries and actually start to have a grasp of just how high the cost of living is in this country and just how much you need to earn to be able to do all of these things. It is scandalous that people on lower incomes have to make the choices that they do and that is mostly driven by the cost of housing which is my biggest outlay by far.

managing on my budget I don't suppose any of them would struggle per say. I hope they would all come away with an appreciation that we aren't rich and don't have a lavish lifestyle despite all three parties placing us in this bracket and looking for ways to squeeze us harder.

1/ understanding issues facing women like me: David Cameron ha ha ha is my first thought. Cameron either has no grasp or more likely wants no grasp of issues facing women like me. I think of the Tory party as women haters. They hate poor women because they are poor and they hate relatively wealthy women like me because we still want to work when we could afford to be SAHM. Imagine actually thinking women should have their own pensions and financial indepence! Having said that I can't understand why a party so against the state supporting people would not want to encourage financial independence in women.

Nick Clegg I see no attempt to address women as voters with slightly different priorities to men. His wife is a senior businesswomen so you think he would have a better understanding of at least issues that middle class women are concerned about which should be a platform to addressing the issues that concern women of all classes. As discussed before by many OP's Nick Clegg has lost his credibility anyway so anything interesting he had to say would always be tainted by his sense of opportunism.

Ed Milliband he doesn't have enough women in his inner circle and this is a mistake. I remember the early days of new labour and there was such a sense of promise that this party could deliver and were listening to women and this seems top have been lost.

women being heard in politics in this respect they are all as bad as each other. There seems to be no real intent to tackle the root cause of under representation of women in Westminster which I suspect is the old boys network again. I just feel that you need to be a certain age to deal with an old boys, patriarchal culture but you are expected to get into politics young and I don't think most women in their early twenties could handle the culture. The entire culture in Westminster needs to change.

trusting a party to look after the interests of women I probably trust labour the most and the conservatives the least although my faith in labour probably isn't deserved on this issue.

1) So, these days how well or badly do you think the current main party leaders are doing on understanding the issues and concerned facing women like you.
First of all David Cameron?
And then Nick Clegg?
And then Ed Miliband?
What about another party leader you know of (or one you think should/ could be a party leader) - please name them and then say: how well or badly do they do on this aspect?

David Cameron does nothing to speak to women like me, and alienates me on a daily basis. He speaks in soundbites, but frequently contradicts himself. His Big Society and "We're all in this together" is completely at odds with his view that those who don't work full time are failing "to work hard and get on". I work very hard for nothing on a number of voluntary projects. A little bit of help with childcare while I attend meetings with the NHS to debate maternity care or while I support a new mum who is struggling would be a welcome relief.

I hoped Nick Clegg would be able to affect change from within by challenging some of the Conservative's blinkered views. Unfortunately he seems to be nothing more than a puppet.

Ed Milliband doesn't seem to be creating much of an opposition yet. He appears to disagree with the government, but doesn't say what he would offer to voters.

All 3 of the above are preferable to the likes of Farrage and Griffin though...

2) and how well or badly do you think they make sure or take account of women being heard in their party and in politics generally?
First of all David Cameron?
And then Nick Clegg?
And then Ed Miliband?
What about another party leader you know of (or one you think should/ could be a party leader) - please name them and then say: how well or badly do they do on this aspect?

There are so few high flying women in government. Theresa May, Margaret Hodge and Tessa Jowell are the only ones that spring to mind in any party. The female back benchers are often made to appear like "silly little women" - how much of this is down to their treatment by their party leaders and how much is down to the media's portrayal and reporting, I don't know. David Cameron treated Nadine Dorries abysmally not so long ago and appeared to get away with it.

I think all parties need to pay more attention to the issues faced by women and families, and this may not necessarily be by recruiting more female MPs or by making female MPs more prominent. I think the vast majority of women would consider a career in politics to be incompatible with family life, due to the long working hours and amount of time spent away from the family home. The issues faced by women and families need to be understood better by all MPs, not just female ones.

3) Finally for now - which party - if any - do you trust the most to look after the interests of women? Why? And which do you trust the least? And why?

Right now, none of them. None of them seem to listen, they don't care. I am part of the "squeezed middle" and whilst I am grateful to have a roof over my head and food on the table, no one seems to be offering anything attractive for women and families like me.

1. So, these days how well or badly do you think the current main party leaders are doing on understanding the issues and concerned facing women like you. First of all David Cameron? Good God no. His insistance on the state of marriage being essential and something the government wish to push us into at the moment is whats annoying me most about him at the moment. As a parent in an extremely stable, happy unmarried relationship I find it insulting and patronising to be told I should be married to better fit with society. Oh yes, and lets give a financial incentive to married couples so they feel even more trapped if they arent getting on - it'll be great for their kids to grow up watching them fight. Other people of course, may do what they wish and its good he has supported equality in marriage for same sex couples, but I still resent the implication that he knows what would be best for me when clearly he knows naff all about me or my family. Oh wait, am I more annoyed about his stupid 'Oh everyone can still afford for their children to go to university when its £9000 a year' I trained as a vet when university was still free and there is not a chance that my son will be able to follow in my footsteps. The demographic of our profession will be changed back to its previous privately educated, inherited wealth set. It is madness for anyone who isn't already independently wealthy to consider applying at present - they will earn enough to be made to pay their loan back, but nowhere near enough for it not to matter. He knows nothing of the issues affecting ordinary people on normal wages, and clearly cares less.

And then Nick Clegg?
He understands some of them. I was pleased with the sharing of maternity leave with your partner, this is the last piece of legislation needed to make women as equal in the workplace as we can be without the artificial womb. The rest is all changing attitudes. As a couple with a female breadwinner (and only eligible for statutory maternity pay), this potentially would make a massive difference to us - we would use it more though, if you could divide the total time and cash between us as a couple, but both take it at once, to cover the period when its hardest to care for the child. I'm not really sure why you can't, but think this might be a reason for the poor uptake - it just feels more disjointed taking it later, especially if your partner has taken statutory paternity leave.
He has proved weak though. He hasn't stuck to his guns and has let several things close to the hearts of the Liberals, notably tuition fees, slip through his fingers.

And then Ed Miliband?
He looks slimy and false, but I know nothing about him or his policies to be honest. Who even is he?

What about another party leader you know of (or one you think should/ could be a party leader) - please name them and then say: how well or badly do they do on this aspect?

2. and how well or badly do you think they make sure or take account of women being heard in their party and in politics generally?
   First of all David Cameron? Not at all
   And then Nick Clegg? He might if he had the backbone. He tries, I think.
   And then Ed Miliband?Who knows
   What about another party leader you know of (or one you think should/ could be a party leader) - please name them and then say: how well or badly do they do on this aspect?

3. Finally for now - which party - if any - do you trust the most to look after the interests of women? Why? And which do you trust the least? And why?
   None of them can be trusted. None can be trusted to do what they say. All of them spin. Makes you wonder what is even the point of voting.

Just realised that last paragraph makes it sound like those two things are an example of conflicting policies. That's not what I meant. they were an example of things that affect women more than men.

1. So, these days how well or badly do you think the current main party leaders are doing on understanding the issues and concerned facing women like you. First of all David Cameron? Absolutely crap. I don't think he understands any issues relating to normal (not super rich) people, let alone women.

And then Nick Clegg?
I have no idea what he thinks. I'm also not hugely bothered what he thinks because I wouldn't trust him not to say one thing and then do the complete opposite at the first signs of pressure/bad publicity.

And then Ed Miliband?
Out of the 3 I think he has slightly more understanding but I'm not sure he truly gets it.

What about another party leader you know of (or one you think should/ could be a party leader) - please name them and then say: how well or badly do they do on this aspect?
I'm not sure really. I don't think any of them really get it. I can't think of a single politician that would have problems financially if both of them were working (e.g. they wouldn't be in the position of being unable to afford for one of them to work as they'd have to pay out more in childcare).

2. and how well or badly do you think they make sure or take account of women being heard in their party and in politics generally? First of all David Cameron? And then Nick Clegg? And then Ed Miliband? What about another party leader you know of (or one you think should/ could be a party leader) - please name them and then say: how well or badly do they do on this aspect?

Actually I think they are all useless on this. It often seems that they have a few token women in the party so it's harder to accuse them of being sexist.

3. Finally for now - which party - if any - do you trust the most to look after the interests of women? Why? And which do you trust the least? And why?

Labour. They seem to be the least bad of the three. I also think they have a better attitude to employment laws generally, which in turn bring about more women's rights.

I trust the conservatives least. They seem intent on introducing conflicting policies that manage to affect women more than men. Things like child benefit being means tested, making it easier to sack people (within 2 years of employment rather than one).

Thinking about when you decide which party to vote for, how important is the leader of the party in that decision?

Very important to me as based on the leader you can guess or assume who may be given certain other cabinet positions. I hate to see a minister for education whom has no experience or knowledge of education.

What do you look for in a party leader? What makes a good party leader and what makes a bad one? What makes a good prime minister and what makes a bad one?

Trustworthy
Honest
Clean
Knowledgable
Experienced
Willing to listen
Someone who isn't fiddling their expenses
Someone who isn't employing a family member on a ridiculous salary for goodness knows what

I look for a leader who is able to lead. I want a leader who is honest about their policies and sticks to them, unless they realise they are not working out and would not be afraid to draw a line under them and move on. I like a leader who admits they do not have all the answers and is willing to best utilize the experience and skills of their cabinet.

Thinking about the party you voted for at the 2010 General Election and the party you would vote for now, has it changed?

Yes. I voted labour and I'm not sure I would vote for them again. I think it's just the lack of visibility on their existing policy. It currently seems that Labour are keeping their heads down to watch the colossal mess that the coalition is creating. They appear to have a strategy of let the others sink and we will be the victors who swoop in and win, sadly I believe that the UKIP is gaining in popularity and this strategy won't work.

*1) So, these days how well or badly do you think the current main party leaders are doing on understanding the issues and concerned facing women like you.
First of all David Cameron?

Cameron is so out of touch with ordinary people full stop I have zero respect and low expectation.

And then Nick Clegg?

Insipid, weak leader, I can't recall that he's done anything noteworthy regarding women?

And then Ed Miliband?
Should try to get more women on board as he does some times speak sense....

What about another party leader you know of (or one you think should/ could be a party leader) - please name them and then say: how well or badly do they do on this aspect?*

Caroline Lucas is my local MP, like her a lot.

2) and how well or badly do you think they make sure or take account of women being heard in their party and in politics generally?
First of all David Cameron?
And then Nick Clegg?
And then Ed Miliband?
What about another party leader you know of (or one you think should/ could be a party leader) - please name them and then say: how well or badly do they do on this aspect?

Really the same applies as above - sick of all the Old Boys and Cleggs infatuation with being so close to being in power

3) Finally for now - which party - if any - do you trust the most to look after the interests of women? Why? And which do you trust the least? And why?

I think Labour most as this is the party whose policies and ideals I most closely align with and the opposite goes for the Conservatives - they make my skin crawl as a group so I don't trust them for anything really.

I haven't got a clue about any of the leaders at the moment though, let alone their views on women!

The party leader is important. If it is someone that is slimy and unlikable, I would be put off voting for that party. Also, if I feel the leader is completely removed from real life, perhaps having been born with a silver spoon in their mouth and acting superior because of it, I would not vote for them.

I don't tend to stick to the same party each time I vote because I take into consideration recent events.

1. So, these days how well or badly do you think the current main party leaders are doing on understanding the issues and concerned facing women like you. First of all David Cameron? I think DC has not one iota of concern for women's issues other than getting us to vote for his lot. So many of his parties' policies have marginalised and downgraded the status of women, and yet he seems oblivious to this.

And then Nick Clegg?
I honestly have no idea what Nick Clegg is doing to improve or promote women's issues. His image is all about sucking up to Dave and not being strong enough to fight his own issues.

And then Ed Miliband?
Doesn't say much but he really should be doing more to get women on board with a revived Labour party.

What about another party leader you know of (or one you think should/ could be a party leader) - please name them and then say: how well or badly do they do on this aspect?
Well, for a start Natalie Bennett actually IS a woman so that gives her a heads up in my book! She takes on issues which I (as a woman) believe to be important.

2. and how well or badly do you think they make sure or take account of women being heard in their party and in politics generally? First of all David Cameron? I truly despair sometimes of the 'old boys club' state of the House of Commons and the Tories in particular. Of course it is a wasteland as far as women are concerned as I can't think of anything worse than being a female in that environment. His "calm down dear" comments have destroyed any credibility he has wrt his respect for women.

And then Nick Clegg?
I have no idea about the LibDems' efforts to be inclusive to women as I lost faith and interest in them 3 years ago. I suspect NC has similar attitudes to DC - all talk and likes women in their place.

And then Ed Miliband?
Again, when you're in opposition, you can say anything to appease large portions of your voters. Labour, however, have always (imo) been more inclusive and respectful of women's voices. There's still a bloody long way to go though.

What about another party leader you know of (or one you think should/ could be a party leader) - please name them and then say: how well or badly do they do on this aspect?

3. Finally for now - which party - if any - do you trust the most to look after the interests of women? Why? And which do you trust the least? And why? I don't particularly trust any party to do this. Labour have a much better track record of promoting equality though. The Conservatives have committed heinous crimes against women (and the poor) during this government, stripping away power, financial independence and dignity from them. They will never be trusted with protecting women's rights and status in my house!

1) So, these days how well or badly do you think the current main party leaders are doing on understanding the issues and concerned facing women like you.
First of all David Cameron?
I think he has very little understanding of impact of policies really and cares less...(is scared of Farrange and Gove- says it all really)
And then Nick Clegg?
So desperate to be in power doesn't give a stuff and is hamstrung now to make the party have a distinct position- previoulsy would have been a lib dem strength
And then Ed Miliband?
Isn't in power so doesn't have to be making decisions but seems to be missing the opportunity to really make hay with the real life impacts

What about another party leader you know of (or one you think should/ could be a party leader) - please name them and then say: how well or badly do they do on this aspect?

The Green lady seemed much more real and aware but has such lack of media presence I can't even remember her name...

2. and how well or badly do you think they make sure or take account of women being heard in their party and in politics generally? First of all David Cameron?-old boys club thru and thru ,seriously Theresa May (mummy/nanny figure) only senior women.... And then Nick Clegg?- would have previously seen as lib dem strength but now all boys again And then Ed Miliband?- labour seem more female orientated as strengths are in key issues for me health/education

but with 503 male mps and 147 female mps none of them really represent my 50/50 ish world.........

What about another party leader you know of (or one you think should/ could be a party leader) - please name them and then say: how well or badly do they do on this aspect?

3. Finally for now - which party - if any - do you trust the most to look after the interests of women? Why? And which do you trust the least? And why? Labour I think would look after the interests or women more as they are closer to the important issues of family life.... thanks again - we will add some more questions for the weekend.

Thinking about when you decide which party to vote for, how important is the leader of the party in that decision? Why?

The leader is important because he/she is the main representative and spokesperson for Party views. However, the policies are more important. If I agreed with the policies but disliked the leader I would still vote for that party. It wouldn?t work the other way around though ? I wouldn?t vote for a personality alone the way I believe some people did for Boris Johnson in the London mayoral elections.

What do you look for in a party leader? What makes a good party leader and what makes a bad one? What makes a good prime minister and what makes a bad one?

A party leader should:

• believe in what they stand for
• not patronise the electorate (either literally in their manner -?Nick Clegg?or in being deliberately deceitful or trying to cover things up, which goes for all MPs really I suppose)
• lead their party ? be a model for those looking to them, support and encourage younger MPs and political talent
• really understand what life is like for the electorate across the huge spectrum of this country
• listen and act upon to the views of their fellow party members and electorate

Thinking about the party you voted for at the 2010 General Election and the party you would vote for now, has it changed? Why? Why not?

It has not changed because I have a good local MP who represents a party I have sympathies with, though I don?t agree with everything they/he have done in the past.

Thinking about when you decide which party to vote for, how important is the leader of the party in that decision?
Leaders are crucial to my decision and it's the reason I may be wavering from the party I've always voted for.

Why? Simply, parties need a figurehead which embodies the beliefs of their electorate. Without that, who knows what you're voting for. And sadly, in these celeb-driven days, there is a huge portion of voters who are looking simply at personality. A lot of people don't have time or inclination to read manifestos and listen to the Today programme - they rely simply on whether the party leader looks as if he/she reflects their general views.

What do you look for in a party leader? What makes a good party leader and what makes a bad one? What makes a good prime minister and what makes a bad one?
Charisma, strength, humility are what I look for in a party leader. Charisma seems to be lacking these days among our UK party leaders. Likeability is seen as more important, but IMO this does not make great leaders.

Thinking about the party you voted for at the 2010 General Election and the party you would vote for now, has it changed?

Why?

Why not?

It will depend on local candidates at the time, but the way in which UK politics works means that I will probably vote the way I have always voted which is Labour. I very nearly voted LibDem in 2010 which I would have sincerely regretted the very instant the coalition was agreed. At heart I'm Labour but could easily be pushed to vote for the Greens if we had a credible local candidate. Ed Miliband does nothing at all to inspire me, while I find Natalie Bennett to be a lot of the things I want from a party leader.

Thinking about when you decide which party to vote for, how important is the leader of the party in that decision?
fundamental
Why?
They are the public face of the party, they ensure that the parties policies are taken seriously and garner public support
What do you look for in a party leader? What makes a good party leader and what makes a bad one? What makes a good prime minister and what makes a bad one?
A good party leader has a strong individual personality, can relate to "ordinary" people, the need to be an outstanding orator in order to engage us. A bad party leader would appear aloof, have no "presence" and wouldn't be able to put their point across in an authorative and convincing ,anner

Thinking about the party you voted for at the 2010 General Election and the party you would vote for now, has it changed?
I voted in Lib Dem, which was a tactical and no clearly stupid decision. Yes I have changed my mind
Why?
My vote only helped the Conservatives to take power
Why not?

407 I agree with you but where does the government end and the media begin? Let us not forget Cameron wanted to bring Andy Coulson in to his inner circle...... I would laugh expect it is too real to be funny.

How important is the leader?

Increasingly the leader has become important for me. I think the live televised debates and the Americanised 'following the campaign' trail is focused on the leaders. We are becoming conditioned to allocate our vote based on the leader. I do make an effort to find out about local candidates but this would be unlikely to sway my vote.

What do you look for in a party leader etc?

I would say honesty but I think it is naive to expect that any of the major party leaders espouse this virtue. In the absence of honesty a sense that they can defend their own manifesto and that it wasn't written on the back of a fag packet and that there has been some consideration to the implementation and costs.

I think a good leader is one who has a grip on what most of the electorate think even where they have a difficult message to deliver. I despise leaders who think we are all thick and ruled by the right wing press. The Conservatives have a really transparent policy of announcing something really unpopular, letting everyone get wound up and then watering it down to whatever they wanted to achieve all along. I'm baffled as to why people can't see this. An obvious example was the public service pay freeze which was initially touted as a pay cut. Hey presto, a pay freeze doesn't look so bad when the threat was a cut.

A good PM needs a presence on the world stage and therefore they need to be able to communicate well with everyone.

Through the course of my work I come across several parliamentary candidates and some of them are captivating in the way they talk to you and make you feel that they are really, really listening to what you have to say.

A bad PM would be one who doesn't make me feel safe be that through their economic or defence policies.

How did I vote; has it changed?

I voted labour. I was probably one of about 10 people who liked Gordon Brown. I think he is a cautionary tale of how important image is now..... He didn't have a good image and that overshadowed his policies.

In some ways I should be a natural Tory voter. DH and I are higher earners from middle class backgrounds but I don't like their hatred of the poor, women and public servants. DH and I are wealthy off the back of free education and full employment. I could literally weep for young adults trying to establish themselves now and I don't see any sign that the Tories have any policies to deal with this.

I may vote labour again but this is due to a lack of suitable alternative. If Nick Clegg and Vince Cable hadn't been so horribly opportunist and settled down in Cameron's pocket I would have considered voting liberal.

I hope Ed Milliband becomes a bit more visible and tones his TU friendly policies down a bit and then he will be a really viable choice for me. He runs the risk of alienating me at the moment as he doesn't offer much for the old 'new labour' fans and I have serious doubts about Ed Balls doing a better job than the pretty awful job Osbourne does.

Oh and I agree with the poster above about being really annoyed when the government (or is it really the media??) tris to turn us all against one another.

And in addition to benefits v non benefits, there has been teachers v nurses, public v private sector... Really distracts from the real issues. And makes us all look petty ("They shouldn't be allowed XXX because I haven't got it. I don't care if they need it, and need it a lot more than me, if I can't have it, no one should!")

(NB I use 'his/him' here as non gender specific, CBA to type him/her every time).

What do you look for in a party leader?
Intelligence, strength of character, integrity and compassion.

What makes a good party leader and what makes a bad one? A good leader has his party behind him through belief in his ability to lead and, overall, his views on policies. A bad leader is weak, causes division and changes his mind so often there is no direction.

What makes a good prime minister and what makes a bad one? The above, plus the charisma to represent us as a country, to hold his own on the world stage and command the respect of other heads of state.

Thinking about the party you voted for at the 2010 General Election and the party you would vote for now, has it changed? Why? Why not?
I voted Tory. I was a higher rate tax paying childless married woman working in the private sector. Now... I am the same, but also a mother.

Has it changed? I am persuadable. I am not impressed with the way Gove has alienated teachers and don't believe there will be improvements in education as a result. I feel the child benefit means testing will be expensive to administer and that will outweigh savings, so a stupid move. I feel the Tories pander to the baby boom generation.

However i am not convinced that Labour is presenting any strong alternative. All they seem to do is attack the government and their own policies are either barely disguised copies or farcical. So I am on the fence.

As the delegate above said, voting for a party headed by Dubya would not be possible!!!