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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

... to think that having FIVE holidays...

106 replies

LostMyIdentityAlongTheWay · 20/08/2011 09:55

in a single year is taking the FUCKING piss?? As David Cameron has just started his fifth, I'd like to wish him heaps of shit and not a lot of fun. Seeing as he could barely be bothered to bring his to the yard when the rioting milkshake started (how gracious of him to finally turn up) this is just sickening.

People are KILLING themselves trying to make ends meet here (need I cite the AIBU stresshead threads about money, and the lack thereof..., I feel that pain!) and this is just ridiculous judgement on his part.

Or a total lack of.

ANd yes, I hate the fucking coalition, No, I think they didn't get a mandate to rule, I could boot Clegg quite happily up the arse - but these are all for other threads.

I heard about the five holidays on Radio 4 this morning and nearly spat out my tea!! Let's face it - he'll have at least one more before the year is out? He's entitled to a holiday, no question. But five???

Talk about how the other half live. Pah. Must be nice. Hmm

OP posts:
chill1243 · 20/08/2011 11:09

well, parliament has got 7 weeks holiday. Longer than the children.

Original poster
LostMyIdentityAlongTheWay · 20/08/2011 11:24

I'm not sure that he could have DONE much had he come back earlier to the riots, I'm not saying he'd have swanned in and all would have been well, but certainly it was - I still maintain - dreadful judgement on his part - and that of all the cabinet - not to be around when it all started going majorly tits up. Tottenham was up in flames and the police KNEW this was happening and nobody from the front bench was around to sort it. That is just awful. I don't think that effectively all the 'board' of any major company would take holiday and be away at the same time? WTF were they thinking?

Of course he is 'entitled' to have the holiday. We all are. What I'm saying is it's insensitive and not in touch with 'the people' that he wants to make up his big socieity. People are genuinely struggling to make ends meet, FFS, the government is pulling support away left, right and center - in ways that disadvantage the disabled, women and familes - and that's not my judgey socialist pants on, Milly Grin that's the judgement of RIGHT wing think tanks, FFS! and he is off again on holiday.

If he's PM, he takes the rough with teh smooth and plays the game, IMO. He's not doing that. He's showing poor judgement and I have to say that I think also, absolutely dreadful leadership. Total lack of that.

OP posts:
limitedperiodonly · 20/08/2011 11:30

Dave has a petulant streak that may be his eventual undoing.

He has consistently arrived at unwise decisions - hiring and sticking by Andy Coulson, the flirtation with Bill Bratton, being just two - and stubbornly stuck by them only to have to climb down when they have been proved to be unworkable or actively damaging.

He presents this as principle but I think it's got as much to do with a childish two finger salute to anyone who has the temerity to advise him that he's making a mistake.

I don't think Britain will fall to bits just because he and Sam are in Cornwall but I think it's unwise for him to go at a time when something else might happen that would necessitate him rushing home and being caught on the back foot yet again.

To me it's not a question of how rich he is or how many holidays he has but it's that he doesn't seem to have any political nous. I find it worrying that someone like that is leading our country.

TrillianAstra · 20/08/2011 11:35

If someone can afford five holidays, then why shouldn't they have five holidays? Just because you can't?

TheRealTillyMinto · 20/08/2011 11:40

i think he is a hypocrite.... he likes to present the 'Dave' image when really he is some rich etonian. 'we are all in this together' - no dave we are most definitely not.

MABS · 20/08/2011 11:41

I will have had five holidays by end of year :)

Original poster
LostMyIdentityAlongTheWay · 20/08/2011 11:43

Trillian, I agree with your point about if somebody can afford it, why not - although I don't agree that some should have more money than others (see socialist bits and bobs earlier...). However, he is the PM. That is my point - he's taking the piss, doing stuff like this when HE is passing rules in parliament that arefinancially breaking families in this country.

that's not right. He doesn't really give a shit about people, I think it's all about having the power, he's not a conviciton policitian.

OP posts:
fifitrixibellesmith · 20/08/2011 11:48

well he probably works 20 hour days - you can tell the strain it puts on people when you look at the before/after PM photos of Blair & Brown

I wouldnt fancy the job, five holidays or 50

crazyspaniel · 20/08/2011 11:59

I don't think Cameron (or Clegg for that matter) has anything like the work ethic of Brown or Blair, and certainly not of Thatcher. There is nothing wrong with someone having five holidays but when you take on the most senior post in public life then having more holidays than the average person can muster from their annual leave allowance suggests that that person doesn't really understand the concept of public service. In between the two holidays he's had this month, he also spent yesterday watching the cricket. None of this would be quite so bad if it wasn't so abundantly clear from his performance so far that he has an awful lot to learn about this country's population and problems.

limitedperiodonly · 20/08/2011 12:07

I agree with crazyspaniel

MilaMae · 20/08/2011 12:26

YANBU particularly when he spouts the "we're all in this together" shit.

RebelFromTheWaistDown · 20/08/2011 12:30

I wish he would go on a long holiday. And never come back.

MilaMae · 20/08/2011 12:31

Rebel don't think you'll be alone on that one Grin.

gaaagh · 20/08/2011 12:35

Cameron is a Tory politician. Do we really expect any less?

Frankly, he can go fuck himself with his talk of "we're all in this together" (really? is "SamCam" worrying about the cost of bread flour like us? is she going to work and not eating until 8pm in the evening to save on the food bill this week because the local tesco has stopped stocking some of its value basics? really?) and "Big Society".

The man is a fucking insult - I'm not saying any of the other parties are any better collectively, but Cameron does make me angry because he has the audacity to pretend, in large scale media campaigns, that he's something he's so clearly not.

wideawakenurse · 20/08/2011 12:46

YANBU.

I have no issue with people taking as many holidays as like. Good for them.

I take issue that DC clearly has no visionary leadership skills and that this is a good example of that.

I used to be a ward sister. I could have worked Monday to Friday 8-4. But, and here's the difference, I wanted the best from my staff. I wanted to earn their respect.

So, I covered shifts when we were short, I did nights and weekends, I would stay late etc.

In that, not only did I have the respect of those I was leading buy they could never retort to me that I didn't understand what they were going through.

Inspirational leadership, I have forgotten more about it than DC will ever learn. Grin

Scaevola · 20/08/2011 13:00

YABU - he'll be using the standard 25 days (less than senior civil service, allowance!)

And we know he takes work away with him.

And if we're looking at the last calendar year, one of those was his paternity leave, and I think it would send an unfortunate signal if this was assumed or described as a "holiday".

Scaevola · 20/08/2011 13:01

BTW - the Prime Minister who took next to no holidays was Margaret Thatcher. Is she being held up as the example of how it should be done?

elliejjtiny · 20/08/2011 13:13

I thought 20 days holiday was standard for most people, although I think civil servants get more than the average. DH gets 25 though as he's a manager :)

We haven't had a holiday this year (we normally have a few days staying with the grandparents) as dh had to use his holiday to help me with the dc's various medical appointments and ds3's stay in hospital. So I'm a bit Envy of DC's 5 holidays in a year.

magicmummy1 · 20/08/2011 13:14

I dislike David Cameron intensely, and I haven't had a "proper" holiday this year myself, but....

he has an incredibly stressful job and a young family, I believe in the importance if a work-life balance for everybody, and if he can afford the breaks away, then I see no reason why he shouldn't enjoy them.

I don't, however, feel that it was right for all of the senior cabinet ministers to go off on holiday all at once - somebody should have been left in charge, as would happen in any other organisation.

doesthisseemright · 20/08/2011 13:14

Blush I have had 5 holidays this year.

JockTamsonsBairns · 20/08/2011 13:15

I don't see this as being a socialist issue tbh. I'm a socialist and, ideologically speaking, the divide between rich and poor doesn't sit right with me. However, we are living with capitalism and the free market and hence those with more money and opportunity are in a position to take more holidays. That's how it is.

Also, I agree with the poster who raised the point about holidaying in the UK boosting the domestic economy.

doesthisseemright · 20/08/2011 13:16

Im counting pontins Grin

honeymom · 20/08/2011 13:18

He is a millionaire. He has kids his wife probably wishes she could come on here and ask Aibu to expect my dh to not Leave our holiday half way through to work. Aibu to expect my dh to be home in time to put the kids to be on occasion etc etc. He Works a lot. Which will mean sacrifices for his family. I he has time off he should be allowed to spend it as he pleases. After all he can be called back any time.

I also think its insane that the whole of parliament break for summer. Do they think they are still at school Wink

magicmummy1 · 20/08/2011 13:20

Oh, and I forgot to say that I don't really want a completely burnt out and exhausted PM running the country. I know I am more efficient and effective when I have had a break, maybe he feels the same.

A workaholic approach to one's job is not necessarily the best.

magicmummy1 · 20/08/2011 13:23

Honeymom, I think the idea of the long summer recess is to enable MPs to spend more time in their constituencies, rather than swanning off on long summer holidays - but I'm sure this is abused by some!