Can you do the school run and run the country?

[HelenMumsnet]

Hello.

We've been reading this story about Nick Clegg "killing himself" to take his children to school in the morning - and we wondered what you all think...

Is Miriam Clegg right to insist that she and her husband share the school run - or should Nick, as the Telegraph suggests, be concentrating on running the country?

Reading this article makes me wonder if the telegraph are stuck in a 1963 timewarp. He is only a politician. Millions of people with really important jobs like saving lives and educating children do the school run every day.

The article's bad enough, the comments are truly scary.

Good on Nick Clegg.

Surely the most important job Cleggy will ever do is be a father?? Or perhaps that just me being naive ...

I can't get beyond the nasty tone of the article. What is her problem exactly? If he is able to, then why shouldn't he?
Is there any point pointing out that he won't be deputy PM forever but he will be a father. Probably not.

Of course he can do both! As JoleneJoleneJoleneJoleeene says, lots of other people with important jobs do both. Some understanding and a degree of flexibility from us wife would help though - his hours are probably less predictable than many.

The more politicians have to juggle like the rest of the world, the more they'll understand the lives of everyone else!

She's not Miriam Clegg .

I like her.

Mind you, I like the school run. I appear to be in a minority on this, but I enjoy it.

Hmm, interesting. Does he have a school run outfit?

@motherinferior

She's not Miriam Clegg .

I like her.

Sorry Miriam González Durántez

On another note though, we do all put the world to rights at the school gate, don't we? He probably gets bonus points in Cabinet meetings, passing off ideas he's picked up from standing around gossiping with the other mums and dads.

It's obviously a quiet news day.

You work out within a relationship what the roles are and who is going to accept what responsibility. If within their partership, they value her job equally and they have agreed a division of responsibility, frankly it doesn't matter if his day job is God.

He is the Deputy PM - not exactly the most onerous job in Government. Half the time he doesn't even seem to be required to know what is going on.

If she earns more than him, would an objective assessment not be that her job and prospects are the most important and he should therefore be the one who is more flexible. I bet her promotion prospects are better than his!

Where are these men who do the school run? The government Every man i know socially and locally is in London after a commute and at their desk by 7.00 am. Perhaps if politicians did proper hours the country wouldn't be in such a mess.

IME the more senior you are, the more you can control your own time. Who's gonna tell Clegg he has to be in for 0900? The truth is, he has a whole office full of people to do his bidding - at a guess about 4 private secretaries, a diary secretary, a press secretary etc. They can hold the fort whilst he's doing the school run. Plus like most politicians I should think he works long hours in the evenings and at weekends looking at official papers, answering letters etc.

Ditto for Mrs Clegg. She's a partner at her law firm, right? So at the very least she has a PA and then a whole bunch of more junior lawyers working for her, not forgetting the nanny and other help in the house.

I kind of like the idea of Mrs Clegg rolling into her office at 1000 some mornings because she did the school run. Might give a bit of hope to the women lawyers rising up in the firm that, actually, they themselves won't have to resign when they have kids (unless they want to, of course).

What mrsbaldwin said

at Quiet News Day

Al0uiseG - I'm not one to normally defend the government, but I am strongly opposed to the macho culture of presenteeism that's crept into industry over the last 15 years. I'm in senior management, and have managed to progress my career because I deliver better results than my colleagues. This is despite never working outside of 9 - 5.30 hours, while colleagues feel the need to turn up early and stay late to "prove" their commitment.

I'm not trying to big myself up here - the point is that I strongly believe that comments like yours promoting a long working-hours culture are incredibly unhelpful for anyone (man or woman) who wants to balance a career with family life.

(Sorry for overly long last sentence - I got a bit ranty there

Well if your market opens at 7am and you want to trade it well i guess its best to get there before the open. It just depends which sector you are in.

But Nick Clegg doesn't run the country

"killing himself" to do the school run! Drop the kids off, go to work, what's so difficult?

Try doing a full SAHM day, then leaving home at 6.15pm to go work till 7.30 the next morning, then home, scool run full SAHM day and crawling into bed when the kids finally go to sleep that night.

I don't know, what does David tell him he shoud do?

I must admit, my first thought on hearing of this from the radio was - How many au-pairs/nannies do they have?

Note - not, do they? But, how many?

How can it be 'emasculating' for Nick Clegg to do the school run??

This article is astoundingly awful. Just... No. Can't get the words out. Unbelievable. Wrong on soooo many levels.

Poisonous article.

I would imagine that the presentation of this story and the vituperation around it has a lot to do with the fact that is is more socially acceptable for a woman to be seen to henpeck her husband than it is for a man to say that he'd like to take his children to school.

Hurrah for the Clegg - Gonzales Durantez household, striking a blow for equality.

wigglesrock Wed 13-Jul-11 12:32:06

I don't know, what does David tell him he shoud do?

"I say Cleggers old boy - do pop down on the school run and find out what MN is saying about the Govt"