Webchat with Deputy Labour Leader Harriet Harman MP; THURSDAY 7 AUGUST 10.30 - 11.30AM

[KateHMumsnet]

Deputy Labour leader Harriet Harman MP will be joining us at MNHQ on Thursday 7 August between 10.30 - 11.30AM.

Harriet is Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport and Shadow Deputy Prime Minister, she headed Labour's response to the Leveson inquiry and recently made headlines for speaking out about sexism and inequality in Gordon Brown's government.

Harriet was first elected as an MP aged 32 when she was 7 months pregnant, and has long campaigned for gender equality, better maternity pay and conditions and is a long term advocate of women-only shortlists to increase the number for female MPs.

Come and chat to Harriet this Thursday at 10.30AM or do post a question in advance on this thread.

@AskBasil

Why do you think the left has been so unwilling to accept that sexism still exists? Are the brocialists any more willing to listen to women now, than they were when you first entered politics?

I think the left has been more willing than the right to acknowledge the prevalence of, and wrongness of, sexism. Because equality, fairness, anti-discrimination, social justice are very much at the heart of "left" values and certainly why I joined the Labour Party. But though we have made loads of progress...in general and in the Labour Party.....we are still far from free from sexism which still exists and very much matters. Women in the 21st Century should not have to put up with it!

Hi Harriett, I was very concerned to see comments you made about putting up taxes on middle income families - finances are already tight for my family and many others and I don't think this would be fair

What a catalogue of drivel, jenny o'henry.

Did you not know that at webchats, you are limited to one question?

You're not supposed to use them to promote ludicrous Mens Rights Activist nonsense.

How have you coped with all the endless, often misogynistic and pretty nasty criticism from the media and now social media, over the years Harriet - you must have developed the hide of a rhino to survive? Do you think you've had to become quite a hard person and would you honestly encourage a young woman - who wasn't particularly robust - into politics?

@LineRunner

When the PIE* stuff emerged, why didn't you just immediately say sorry?

*Paedophile Information Exchange

Because I was being accused of being an apologist for paedophilia. Which is not and was never true. Everyone, including me, regrets and deplores the way PIE infiltrated so many organisations including Liberty where I worked. But I never supported them and have always campaigned to protect children from sex criminals.

Hi Harriet,

Thanks for your time today. What do you think of quotas in boardrooms and the efforts being made to increase more high level appointments of women in FTSE 250 companies by organisations like The 30% Club?

rofl at inequalities faced by men in britain

(By the way, my question wasn't meant to be aggressive - am genuinely impressed with any woman who's managed to deal with the criticism and rise to the top in politics - hats off to you.)

@pinkballoon19

Hi Harriet! Just wondering, as Shadow Sec for Culture, Media & Sport, what's your fave play, book & film, and what were the last things you saw/read?

Play – Crucible at the Old Vic which I saw on Tuesday. It was sensational….for 3 and a half hours!
Book – Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Film – 12 years a slave

@jennyohenry

Harriet,

I appreciate that you have tried to do some good things for women, and for that I thank you.

However, you have been resoundingly anti-male in a number of your speeches.

When are you going to start talking about the very real, undeniable, inequalities faced by men in modern Britain?

About half of domestic violence victims are male (this figure is just over half or just under half, depending on whose stats you use), but there are NO shelters for abused men in my county and when my brother was stabbed by his wife, his local women's shelter who he phoned for advice laughed at him and told he must be the aggressor. When are you going to fight for equal funding for male victims of DV?

When are you going to do something to halt the worrying lack of achievement of boys in education? Forcing boys to fit into a mould created for girls is NOT the answer? You might not like it, but me and other mums here can tell you for fact, boys and girls are (for the most part) different.

When are you going to address the disparity between the huge numbers of homeless men and funding/shelters for homeless men?

When are you going to address the inequality in our court system which gives grossly harsher sentences to men. The idea that "women aren't made for prison" is outright disgusting. NOR ARE MEN.

Those of us with little boys are genuinely frightened about what kind of world they are going to grow up in, where they are constantly told that they are "bad" and treated like defective girls.

Harriet, I think you are in danger of leaving a legacy of being a bigot and a misandrist. I don't think that's correct, but your words and actions need to be more equal and less anti-male.

Hi, Jennyohenry,
Its just not true that half domestic violence victims are male. Obviously there are disputes about statistics and reporting rates...but the most undeniable and chilling statistics are the domestic homicides. They are overwhelmingly men killing women - their current or former partners. You can't tackle a problem unless you face up to it and are honest about it. That's not bigotry or being a misandrist. There are still so few women in politics and in public life. If women MPs don't speak up about the issues women face, who will?

Hi Harriet, I was very worried to see the other week you saying you would put up taxes on middle income families. My family finances are already very tight as are many others and I don't think this would be very fair

What do you think about Baroness Warsi's resignation?

@ellabellas

Hi Harriett, I was very concerned to see comments you made about putting up taxes on middle income families - finances are already tight for my family and many others and I don't think this would be fair

Hi Ellabellas, deliberate lie by David Cameron on this one, I'm afraid. I was talking about the current tax situation where people on middle income pay more in tax than those on lower income. I was not saying that people on middle incomes should pay more than they do now. It brings politics into disrepute when you have a Prime Minister deliberately misleading people.

@oddledoo

How have you coped with all the endless, often misogynistic and pretty nasty criticism from the media and now social media, over the years Harriet - you must have developed the hide of a rhino to survive? Do you think you've had to become quite a hard person and would you honestly encourage a young woman - who wasn't particularly robust - into politics?

Hi,
Yes, I've had loads of mud thrown at me...but I've had loads of support from family, friends, and women throughout the country over the years. When women come up to me and say they've been a victim of domestic violence and how important it is to have tougher laws on it, or when they say they are still tearing their hair out to balance work and home, I know there's still work to do! But we have made progress so I think it has been worth it.

You've been a passionate supporter of all women shortlists for as long as I can remember - thanks for that. BUT, why, oh please why, did you say that when the selection was going on for the Birmingham seat your husband now represents, that it didn't need an all women shortlist? I'm sure if a male politician had done this, you'd be rightly calling them out for it.

"Hi, Jennyohenry,
Its just not true that half domestic violence victims are male. Obviously there are disputes about statistics and reporting rates...but the most undeniable and chilling statistics are the domestic homicides. They are overwhelmingly men killing women - their current or former partners. You can't tackle a problem unless you face up to it and are honest about it. That's not bigotry or being a misandrist. There are still so few women in politics and in public life. If women MPs don't speak up about the issues women face, who will?"

Firstly, thank you for responding to me.

Secondly, how you can say that domestic violence statistics are untrue is beyond me. They may not fit your narrative, but they are undeniable.

I agree that domestic homicide figures are awful, but are we really going to play that one-upmanship game here? With something so dreadful? ALL domestic violence, whether it's pushing, punching or stabbing must STOP.

I know from bitter experience that women can be just as violent as men, but while women in power refuse to admit this and continue to treat the rest of us like children, you perpetuate this notion of women as being weak.

I think men need people like YOU to stand up and speak for them. You have been brave enough to stand up for women, and look what you've achieved! Male MPs certainly cannot speak up about the societal problems men face because as we know they will be crucified in the media, and so the other half of our population needs your help. It's a strange dichotomy, but we are the strongest weapons in the fight for equality for men and boys in those areas they face hardship.

On a purely cynical level, it'll definitely help quell the talk of you only caring about women and having an anti-male agenda.

I believe that you are interested in a truly equal society, but I don't think you have fully investigated what men and women are dealing with in Britain in 2014.

@Terrierterror

What do you think about Baroness Warsi's resignation?

Hi, I disagree with a lot of her politics but I think the way she's been treated by the Conservatives has been woeful. She resigned on principle and should be respected for that...not accused of "flouncing out".

harriet, thanks so much for your responses so far

please do give your views on the closure of domestic violence refuges due to funding cuts in my question above

Hello Harriet,

How damaging do you think UKIP will be to the Tory vote in the next election?

It just isn't true that women are as violent as men.

The reason men are more likely to be sent to prison than women, is because they are more likely to commit violent crimes. Most men are in prision for violence, that is not true of the female prison population. Men kill their female partners at the rate of 2 women a week, women are not killing their male partners at anything like that rate.

Stop hijacking this webchat for your men's rights activism Jenny.

Thank you.

Hi Harriet - what do you think about Diane Abbott saying she sent her son to a private school so he wouldn't end up in a gang... when this option is not open to most in her consitutency or indeed yours? I am fed up with all the 'do as I say not as I do' behaviour of so many on the Left.

Harriet

Have you any ideas on how to encourage men to share maternity leave with their partners? The legislation is there but the take-up is terribly small. From personal experience I think the main reason is that men are afraid to request leave in case it gives the impression they are not dedicated to their work. And so the status quo does not change much, despite the changes in the law, women are still the default child carers, in employers' eyes as well as everyone else's.
Thanks

Jenny why the fuck should Harriet Harman stand up and speak for men in parliament? Do you think there aren't enough men there to stand up and speak for them?

FFS, the entitlement of MRA's knows no sodding bounds.

Women: always remember that you must not give any focus or priority to your human rights, until you have sorted out men's human rights first.

DFO, TAD

Where's Harriet gone? Has Justine opened the biscuit tin?