Parental contributions to bringing up baby

[CrushaGrape]

Saw this on the Guardian website just now - a reader who thinks that her partner should pay a higher proportion of his earnings to the cost of their life together whilst she takes time off work to look after their baby, whilst he thinks she should use her savings. She should have posted this query on Mumsnet. I can't believe her partner would take his position on this. If you're registered with the Guardian, go tell her what you think. I am currently choosing my words.

www.guardian.co.uk/money/blog/2008/nov/26/maternity-leave-savings

Hmm, well what are her savings for? Why are they "her" savings? His income and her savings are all from same pot anyway aren't they? How does he feel about her taking a year off?

staggering (assuming it's his child that is)

Don't worry the guardian reader will be along later to start a thread about her partner and I'll be on it to say 'what on earth possessed you to have a baby with such a tightwad in the first place?'

Then her thread in 12 months time about how her boyfriend wants her to go back full time but expects HER to meet all the childcare costs...

etc
etc.

Get the money sorted out before you have babies!!

I saw that in the weekend paper - honestly what is that guy like!!
Time to grow up methinks

There's not enough info really.

I'm utterly gobsmacked. I just can't seem to comprehend such nonsense. If you are a couple you share everything. The joint account is your money, the savings are your money it's all a his n hers thing.
And people wonder why the divorce rate is so high. I give those money obsessed f*ckwitts a year max once the baby arrives.

Just goes to show what happens in a society where no value is placed on the security offered by marriage/stable relationships these days. Nobody seems to be in it together anymore which is really sad.

Just goes to show what happens in a society where no value is placed on the security offered by marriage/stable relationships these days. Nobody seems to be in it together anymore which is really sad.

Joint baby, joint responsibility (as has been pointed out).

She could always pay out of her savings and then bill him his share I suppose (puts me in mind of 'The Xenophobe's Guide to the Swedes' where they talk about the 1960's movement of 'wife salary' where women worked out the costs of all the jobs they round the house and with the children, then split it in half and charged their husbands/partners the one half).

Not really a year off is it - at least it certainly wasn't/isn't with either of my two.

superfluous 'they' in previous post sorry

ohhh boy, i'm gettting old whatever happened to partnership/caring for one another/cherishing each other? - since when did having maternity leave constitute 'having a year off'?
do they truly not realise that a baby is for life, not just for paid maternity leave?

i wonder where they will be in 2 years?,my guess is they will be moaning about lack of support from each other, he won't be doing enough childcare, she will be bogged down in domesiticity and not intereseted in sex and she will be short of money