Sarah Brown joining us for live webchat Tues 8 March, 1-2pm

[RachelMumsnet]

Sarah Brown is joining us for a live webchat on her second visit to Mumsnet HQ on Tuesday 8 March between 1pm and 2pm. Sarah's memoir of Downing Street, Behind the Black Door, is out on 3 March and promises to share the secrets of living behind the most famous front door in the world and what it's like to be an ordinary woman, wife and mother in extraordinary circumstances.

Sarah last visited MNHQ back in February 2010 when she was still living at Number 10. We celebrated a Big Night In in aid of the charity founded by Sarah, PiggyBankKids. We're delighted to be welcoming her back, paticularly as the webchat coincides with International Women's Day and Sarah is known for her advocacy of issues around maternal mortality and women's equality.

Join us next Tuesday lunchtime but, as usual, if you're unable to join us, do post a question on this thread that we'll put to Sarah on the day. Everyone who joins in the discussion will be entered into a draw to win one of five signed copies of Sarah's biography Behind the Black Door.

As many posters on here have posted more than once thought I would have another shot, and agree with TaffetasCatCameBack, as a member of the justiceforandy.com campaign & supporter of TaintedBlood we have been tirelessly campaigning for safe blood in this country & justice for the victims of vCJD. No matter how many letters or questions on serious health issues that we want to ask those in positions of power & influence it is a waste of time. Sarah Brown is not able to deal with serious health issues in the UK she has no power as an unelected citizen, she is merely on here to advertise her new book. I think you will find she will only answer questions which are relevant to her book not the state of the economy.

Hi Sarah

Tackling the low pay of several million women is a key to ending the scandal of child poverty.

The hoops anyone has to go through to claim tax credits to prop up a disgracefully low wage - it must be especially difficult for women with little English or low literacy skills. The 'system' is discouraging, officious and weighted heavily in favour of those with good speaking and reading skills and the tenacity to plug away when officials make mistakes or simply get above themselves.
I digress - In 2010, around 3½ million employees aged 22 to retirement were paid less than £7 per hour. Two-thirds were women, many of whom will be mothers and many will work in the public sector where, in spite of the rhetoric about 'austerity' the bosses are very generously paid (most more than any PM) and counsellors are taking lessons from MPs by taking the mickey over expenses.
Your thoughts would be welcome.

I don't have a 'proper' question but does it count if I ask very nicely "please could I win one of the five signed copies of your book?"

I'm paid less than £7 an hour despite being a qualified teacher and working in a school. I am working in a Teaching Assistant role at the moment as I feel it fits in better with the demands of family life, especially taking children to school and picking them up from school.
Nevertheless as a graduate with teaching and nursing qualifications and experience working with children and families over the last twenty years one would hope for slightly higher remuneration !

Sarah
Welcome back to MN.

It must have been an adjustment for your children, leaving London to go and live in Scotland. I am an expat trailing spouse so we do this every 4 or 5 years.

Was there anything that helped your children adjust to the move, and is there anything that you and they particularly miss of your time in Downing St?

Hello Sarah,

As its International Womens day - Which woman do you find the most inspirational?

Thank you for using your position to highlight the important issues of the White Ribbon Alliance.

What message do you think it is most important that we impart to our daughters?

Hi Sarah.

This morning DS1 (9) said he would like to go to Oxford University then play rugby league for Wigan Warriors then become Labour Prime Minister. I asked him what would be the first thing he'd do as PM and he said 'sack all the Conservatives'

I would like to ask if you would be happy for your sons to go into politics.

I ask this because you must have seen yourself how it takes over a person's life.

Also could you please wish DS2 (5) Happy Birthday!

test test

Many thanks for all the questions already sent over to Sarah. We're delighted she's here at MNHQ on her second visit and ready to answer as many of your questions over the next hour. Welcome to Mumsnet, Sarah...

Hi everybody and thanks for having me back for a chat. Mumsnet Towers is as welcoming as I remember, but given this is lunchtime not a Big Night In there will be a bit less wine than last time? I see there?s already been a lively debate about the DH ? both his policies and whether he should be the focus of the discussion today. You can guess my views on both ? but I do just want to say one thing before we start: there are so many big issues out there that it was really hard to pick what charities and causes I was going to support, but having done so I?ve really put my all into those ones, so I?m going to focus on the things I really know about. I?m not a policy wonk (or as we called them at Downing St a pointy head) but I have researched a lot over the years on issues impacting on women and children, so here goes?

@GORGEOUSX

Sarah, I'd just like to take this opportunity to tell you that I thought you conducted yourself brilliantly, when your husband was In Office. I hope future Prime Ministers' wives take your lead and 'stay out of it', as indeed the current one does!

Even though I'm a Tory, I don't believe in 'bashing' the other side, and I wonder, how did you cope with the (at one time extremely) relentless media coverage of all your husband's PERCEIVED faults?

Did Gordon have to prevent you from shouting at reporters "HE'S A LOVELY, DECENT MAN AND HOW DARE YOU"?

SpringHeeledJack, Ajandjjmum, PaulaYatesBiggestFanAmy Tafetta Pond and others who have been so warm ? wow, what a welcome. And GORGEOUSX, I was very touched by your note, especially since you?re from ?the other side? . Some of the reviewers of the book seem to be disappointed that I haven?t launched any really big attacks on anyone, but I completely agree with you that the media does seem to be needlessly negative and personal at the moment. It?s one of the things I like about MN ? for the most part people seem to look for the best in each other and chat woman to woman without attacks.

How are you and the children adjusting to a new life in Fife - have the boys settled in school?Do they notice that life is different?
Must be quite a change for you all.

Firstly I want to thank you for private messaging back on Twitter when I contacted you immediately before the last election. That personal touch meant a huge amount.

I'll certainly be getting a copy of the book.

I'd like to ask given your background in PR and the like, do you have any idea what we could do to highlight the cuts to DLA in the media? As the only media outlet interested thus far is the Guardian and you may have noticed the recent 'disability fraud' articles in many other newspapers which makes our case all the more difficult to make....

Any ideas? Feel free to inbox or tweet me @Glitterknickaz

Welcome Sarah,

I look forward to reading your answers later, as unfortunately an back to work at my school this afternoon !

@MarioandLuigi

Hello Sarah,

As its International Womens day - Which woman do you find the most inspirational?

I was lucky enough to join the judging panel of the list in today's Guardian of the top 100 most inspirational women in the world. My top 3 are Aung San Suu Kyi, Graca Machel and Wangari Maathai.

@oiwhatsoccuring

How are you and the children adjusting to a new life in Fife - have the boys settled in school?Do they notice that life is different?
Must be quite a change for you all.

Fife is our home and they know it well so it's been an easy transition for them into a new school. You would expect life to be less busy but we're still waiting for that to happen.

@scottishmummy

Welcome Sarah,do you think govt nhs cuts will compromise maternal safety as trusts cut or freeze midwifery clinical posts?Given that white ribbon aliance campaign on maternal safety do you feel cuts compromise mums,and whats your response to cutbacks and recruitment freezes

How is life in N Queensferry suiting you and the family?

Scottishmummy ? midwives are my personal heroes and everything we do at PiggyBankKids to save the lives of newborns is dependent on their professionalism and care. I hope we can sustain and increase the number of midwifery posts not just here but around the world, and this year the White Ribbon Alliance is doing a big push on health workers ? please go to www.whiteribbonalliance.org and take the action ? ?show the world midwives matter!?

@jonicomelately

Hi Sarah.

This morning DS1 (9) said he would like to go to Oxford University then play rugby league for Wigan Warriors then become Labour Prime Minister. I asked him what would be the first thing he'd do as PM and he said 'sack all the Conservatives'

I would like to ask if you would be happy for your sons to go into politics.

I ask this because you must have seen yourself how it takes over a person's life.

Also could you please wish DS2 (5) Happy Birthday!

I want them to do whatever will make them happy, whether that's politics or paleontology (as dinosaur discussions a big feature of our household at the moment...) And of course - happy birthday to DS2!

@Maiakins

Hi Sarah, I read somewhere that you are not a natural public speaker and get nervous beforehand. As someone who is crippled by nerves when speaking in front of more than about 10 people, do you have any advice? How did you cope?

And are you glad that part of your life is over, so you don't have to do that anymore? Or did you get so used to it by the end?

P.S. Loved the photo of you with George Clooney in the green cardigan here - can you remember what was going through your head when that photo was taken? He does look very dashing!

Public speaking was definitely the hardest bit of the job for me, as I?m naturally quite reserved, but I found the key thing was to focus on WHY you needed to speak and not whether you were going to enjoy it. So if I could just keep repeating to myself that I was there to speak up for people who might not otherwise be heard ? domestic violence victims, women with no midwives to help them have their babies, women who needed decent Sure Start services so they could get out to work ? then I found it was easier to find my voice. Practically, I always focused on taking really big deep breaths for the whole ten minutes before I spoke, not just before getting on stage and find that having really cold water helps (not just a drink but a really chilly one) stops you flushing as well as stopping the dry mouth feeling.

Hi, although I'm a normal (but not always) Labour voter I've been very critical of Labour government policies and of your husband's policies when he was in office. However, one of the really good policies Labour brought in was the setting up of Surestart/Children's Centres.

Can you give those campaigning against the closure of places providing all kinds of support services and sometimes affordable local childcare some advice on how to run a campaign? And why are those Labour Councils we elected attacking children and women first?

@sis

I don't have a 'proper' question but does it count if I ask very nicely "please could I win one of the five signed copies of your book?"

I think that counts as a question - you're in. Good luck!

How do you manage your time with the different aspects of your work and fltting in famiily needs too? Do you have a plan each day? Do you have a nanny?

I work from home and do find it quite difficult!

@ohmeohmy

Thank you for using your position to highlight the important issues of the White Ribbon Alliance.

What message do you think it is most important that we impart to our daughters?

I was incredibly lucky to have such a strong
role model in my Mum - she picked up her PhD in her 70s. She always encouraged me to believe that just because the glass ceiling is real doesn't mean you need to resign yourself to being trapped under it.

@RustyRainbow

What is your favourite pancake topping?

my favourite topping on pretty much anything is chocolate?

I'd use a pancake emoticon here, only there isn't one - or do you have an emoticon for that?