Mumsnetters voting Reform

[Illjustplayostrich]

Mumsnet mothers have always leaned Labour. Now Reform is ahead

https://www.thetimes.com/article/dbd39087-465c-4587-9eaa-292606ffb775?shareToken=a99daa444e8bc0f9444cca2bf01f3851

I'm slightly startled by this. I'm a centrist, slightly more right leaning perhaps but frankly I'm open to any government who will get a firm grip on the public finances and go about growing the economy in a sustainable way. My impression of this site is that it's definitely more left leaning and and Reform enthusiasts tend to get shouted down. Personally, I think we should be talking about them a lot more as it's highly likely they will form part of the next government.

My impression is that they are promising the earth but don't have people with the necessary skill set to make that happen. I really worry that they will get voted in and find out that they can't fix all the problems within 18 months, leading to yet more disillusionment amongst voters.

Yes absolutely. Over and over again. Was terrible in the run up to the election in summer 2024.

It’s in the article in the op

There are a lot of pro-reform posters active on Twitter during Russian working hours. They are very active in the run up to elections and disappear once the polls close.
We’d be very naïve to think this isn’t happening on this site too.

It definitely did until very recently. As the data shows.

‘Basically a micro-study of why Reform are ahead’

Yes. And they’re so self righteous that they can’t see the consequences of their actions. Comes from the top - all we need to do is look at the name calling from Rayner et al, it’s clear to see.

Arguments rarely even reach that point though.

Never once - ever - has a left wing poster acknowledged the objective truth that were hideously overpopulated and that endless house building had ruined our wildlife, food security, air quality and flood risks.

We are the most densely populated proper country in Europe behind the Netherlands, and that’s only because the Highlands skew the figures.

We’ve had 7 million immigrants since the Millennium and yet our economy is still in tatters and key jobs going unfilled. The answer according to these left wing posters? ‘More immigration’ apparently, even though in spades it has not worked so far.

Better to call somebody a racist and live with the cognitive dissonance than actually admit the truth.

Unrelenting hectoring across threads. Constant demanding of ‘proof’ and statistics to back up held views. Name calling.

Agreed, and well said. On all but your 7 million immigrants since 2000. I’m afraid the figure is much higher than that. It’s more like 20million, and rising.

Yeah, but where did they get the data from?

You’ll need to refer back to the graph for the information you require.

Best wishes with your treatment and sign me up for when you’re back!

As pps have said, I think mumsnet actually was more left leaning. Some trans rights rhetoric has either pushed people a bit further to the right and/or more right leaning people are joining this site because it is known for a less dogmatic, "TWAW" stance.

37-39% of families who get universal credit are in employment - obviously not the majority, but that’s a lot of families benefiting from the lifting of the two child benefit cap by Labour.

Similarly, Labour’s Employment Rights Bill which has more protections against fire/rehire, zero hour contracts, covered sick/bereavement leave, rights from day one all of which benefit working parents.

They’ve also expanded free childcare hours for working parents, breakfast clubs open to all, expanded free school meals eligibility for working parents, etc.

I’d love to know how right-wing policies have better helped working parents. Foodbank use increased from 60,000 in 2010/2011 to 3.1million in 2023/24 under the Tories - a huge amount of those are working families, so I’d be really interested to know exactly which right-wing policies they benefited from that led to this very telling outcome.

Never once - ever - has a left wing poster acknowledged the objective truth that were hideously overpopulated and that endless house building had ruined our wildlife, food security, air quality and flood risks.

I don’t know, I’m moderately left wing, and I’ll acknowledge all that, and I know other people that do. I don’t know what the answer is, but it’s not Nigel Farage, that’s for sure.

I find it very liberal, most of Mumsnet hate Trump and support Palestine!

‘They’ve [Labour] also expanded free childcare hours for working parents’

You mean for non working parents and working parents. Basically a person can sit at home and send their children for 30hrs tax payer paid free child care.

They don’t have to work. It’s this sort of insanity that is causing labour to lose votes (from people who work).

I absolutely acknowledge this. But like @TakeItUpWithTheAnteater , I just don’t think Farage is the answer

Totally agree that Reform / Farage is not the answer.

What’s been discussed / clarified here is that the way Labour have behaved - has resulted in some people turning to Reform / Farage.

Also see rising unemployment thanks to the NI increase and the prospect of the aforementioned employment rights bill.
Labour's policies have consequences for working parents.

What @dylexicdementor11 said, though only here since 2004.

I do hear a range of views on MN, if only because I do assume the different political parties have all got people working on here.

By using these derogatory terms such as 'thick, bigot, racist, flag shagger' etc to describe those intending to vote Reform, it makes me question how Labour are going to get these voters back. Presumably the majority of of these 'thick' people are working class, historically Labour Party voters. Surely by insulting them you aren't going to attract their vote?

I don’t disagree that a lot of people are disillusioned with Labour. I am. I mean, they’re really Tory Labour, aren’t they? The most right Labour has ever been, and they’re still too left for people who want Reform. I don’t know a lot of people who have made a Labour to Reform jump, though? In fact, I’ve never seen anyone on here say they voted Labour and next they’re going to vote Reform. Usually, it’s former Tories and undecided. But you’re absolutely right that other parties should be trying to appeal to those undecideds instead of just “letting” Reform have them without a fight.

The expansion of free childcare hours was a Conservative government policy which Labour chose to continue.
Working families are the only ones that are able to access 30 hours - they have to get an eligibility code from HMRC.

What Labour are doing is expanding FSMs and giving parents free universal breakfast clubs, all of which had to be paid for, seemingly by the rest of us who have to feed our own children as well as everyone else’s.

Never once - ever - has a left wing poster acknowledged the objective truth that were hideously overpopulated and that endless house building had ruined our wildlife, food security, air quality and flood risks

Many, many left wingers were part of the groups that were working 20 years ago on improving wildlife, food security, air quality and flood risks and even on quality standards in building on non flood plains, but we were tagged as extremists and dismissed by the right wing.

Now the right wing seem to want to take the credit for noticing. As is always the way.

Yeah, but where did they get the data from?

QED