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?

what a nasty article, clearly they dont like her much!!!

i dont give a shit, I doubt he does it every day anyway TBH

Not odd, just very sexist. And exaggerated.

I don't know why his wife is receiving criticism at all. She's not the one who is the Deputy Prime Minister, her husband is! It is right he receives criticism, though, imagine being at a very important meeting where matters of great importance are on the cards and somebody announces they have to pick up children from school. How bloody annoying that would be.

miriam gonzález durántez and cleggy share tasks.so what?
the aspect if this i dont like is the inference that a proper wife would be supplicant housewife and political dolly to be wheeled out for campaigns and photo shots. she hasnt given up her career- well done good for her

wamster, you seem determined that anyone successful mustn't have a family life.

What an odd obsession.

Well if you're at a very important meeting and have to pick the kids up (IME)

1. you would have already blocked it out of your diary so the meeting's overrunning - not your problem
2. if it's an emergency meeting you can get someone else to pick up the kids if it's that important
3. if the kids are having an emergency like when my DS had to go to hospital after falling off a climbing frame, nobody really minds.

I have accelerated some nightmare meetings to a close on the day I leave at 2.30, much to everyone's relief.

My husband is a hospital doctor, I have a very part-time job.

We are both parents and as such he does his share, regardless of how important society perceives his job to be.

It doesn't matter what job a mother has, she'll always be expected to play second fiddle to the father.

Good on Miriam.

Agree with Mammonite. There are very few meetings which are so essential they have to drag on for hours and hours - some of the EU stuff about signing treaties or UN resolutions about going to war, I guess. Apart from that it's a sign of an ineffective chair who is not doing his or her job. And your colleagues are generally glad if there's a reason to wrap up on time.

Was it Dilbert who said 'meetings - the alternative to work'?

I ran a session recently that ran half an hour over - it was going really well, everyone was coming up with great ideas. But I'd scheduled it to finish half an hour before work ended to allow for that possibility. What we were discussing was important to us, and to our members, but it isn't going to change the world or cure cancer.

"It doesn't matter what job a mother has, she'll always be expected to play second fiddle to the father.". I totally agree with this. Not only does the (sadly female journalist) display blatant sexism but clearly lacks what it takes to get to the top of her profession, because any woman who is happy to always play second fiddle, quite frankly doesn't have what it takes to get to the top.