Webchat with Deputy Labour Leader Harriet Harman MP; THURSDAY 12 FEBRUARY 12-1pm

[RowanMumsnet]

Deputy Labour leader Harriet Harman MP will be joining us at MNHQ on Thursday 12 February between 12 midday and 1pm.

Harriet is Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, and Shadow Deputy Prime Minister. She was first elected as an MP aged 32 when she was 7 months pregnant, and her long-term campaigning interests include gender equality, better maternity pay and conditions, and women-only shortlists.

Come and chat to Harriet this Thursday at 12 midday, or post a question in advance on this thread if you can't make it on the day.

Thanks
MNHQ

As a relative newbie here, I'd say TOTALLY avoiding acronyms and shortenings when posting questions would help. HE could be higher education, home education, home economics, any number of things, and if someone's reading fast they will ignore anything that isn't immediately clear.

makes sense bitey but this is a labour politician who was in labour when they were last in power and had a massive battle on their hands whilst attacking home education so i doubt it went over her head. it is kind of her line of work and all.

OK Harriet says she would try to log on later and follow up on some of those she didn't get around to.

Thanks for comments/suggestions on the webchat process - we do suggest that guests prepare some answers in advance, and during the chat we try to highlight emerging themes/topics - we don't like to be too bossy about exactly how guests do things because we're conscious they're giving their time to us, often out of pretty busy schedules, and MN webchats aren't (yet) compulsory but we will have a think about how we might be able to help future guests on busy chats get through a few more questions.

Yes or no, here we go -

Will Labour attempt to outlaw home education?

As you sent your two sons to a selective school will you now fight to reverse Labour policy on this issue so that other parents have the same choice as you did?

Will you be taking the 11% pay rise?

Do you regret personally attempting to exempt MPs expenses from the FOI act?

Ms Harman, there's only 4, should be easy. Thank you in advance, we really politely request a yes or no answer to these questions to allow us to continue to feel engaged in the political process.

yes, i guess you're not holding them at gun point but i guess they might want to think about the impression they give (especially if representing a party in the run up to an election) and the size of the audience their words will be seen by.

is it possible to highlight our words in pink? maybe that would help

don't forget the csa!

children being left months with no maintenance (for no reason giving d/d are already in place and will be cancelled pointlessly) and then having a percentage of it taken out of their mouths to give profits to a company is pretty serious stuff no?

I think if she had provided answers beforehand she would have been berated for cutting and pasting from the whatever the Labour guide says should be the right answer.

Definitely yes to not giving a great impression if it looks less like engaging with questions/people than the standard party soundbites.

The whole promise of nannying about health matters and the repeated 'sending messages' catch phrase is off putting in the extreme.

That was embarrasing. It would have been better not to do it at all than to do it so half heartedly and evasively.

TheHoneyBadger If there was an Icelandic revolution party I would vote for them and pledge money in a shot.

I'd like to know about those 200,000 houses to be built every year.

It's so easy to say Labour will "ensure" this.

But whereabouts, and how will they be paid for and then sold/rented at an affordable price?

I think the problem with the politicians doing webchats is that it's crammed into their schedule because someone thinks oh answer a few fluffy questions on mumsnet that will be easy. The questions need thoughtful answers. Some of them are one word answers but often the argument is more subtle and a sentence or two won't do. I don't think the politician is expecting that. It would be better if they could draft the answer in advance, I don't think it will ever work doing it in real time unless they are going to devote a couple of hours to it.

"don't like to be too bossy about exactly how guests do things because we're conscious they're giving their time to us, often out of pretty busy schedules, and MN webchats aren't (yet) compulsory"

I think you are selling yourself short, MNHQ. You have a lot of visitors, a lot of eyeballs and a lot of regulars. You aren't the humble supplicant here.

How about a webcast next time instead? could be a simple voice one or is that not technically feasible?

But in a sense the answers are drafted in advance anyway because it is their party policy. It is stuff they supposedly care about so much, and that matters so much, they want people to vote for them because of it and give them power.

Sorry, my post was in response to maidmarigold, then

That's true Breezy but it still takes time to type it out and also to make if relevant to the actual question. I just think thoughtful, personal replies can't be done in the short time they allow themselves. They need to answer many questions well, not just a couple.

I'd also like to know what the Labour Party's position will be on Home Ed. As a recent beginner in HE the news from more experienced families about Labour's stance in the past worries me. I have emailed Tristram Hunt twice with no response, so my question would to Harriet would be:
Will Labour be forcing Home Ed families to 'register' with Local Authorities?
Will there be penalties for 'not co-operating'? and would families be forced to apply for a license to HE?

As an aside i've always been a past Labour voter (when I've voted) but with the party's move to the right/centre, the expenses scandal, the war in Iraq and the weak leadership of Miliband not to mention Ed Balls being so aggressive my loyalty has been stretched to breaking I'm afraid. Time for a woman to lead the party in my view and I was very disappointed when none of the senior women stood last time.

CFSKate no qualification required. I was not implying you need a PhD but am beginning to wonder if the Jay report at 159 pages long and requiring a reading age above 12 (the reading level of tabloids I believe?) put it beyond their comprehension. You assume the Rotherham councillors are evil, I wonder if the job now needs minimum skills above stuffing envelopes. Interestingly there are 21 Labour female councillors so not just men without any backbone. (That's not partisan there are only 2 conservative councillors & no lib dems.)

ProjectBaby - when all was equal. But private providers would always undercut on cost and that was always the deal breaker whatever nice words were used by commissioners. Also there was always the buying in of capacity to meeting waiting times eg x number of hip replacements, y number of heart bypasses from BUPA et al when they could have increased NHS capacity (recognising ageing demographic & advances in technology) through additional consultant posts.

Giving the political guest the questions in advance would be pointless.

They would just get an assistant to draw up the answers for them cut and pasted from party policy, like they do with written questions from constituents.

The important thing about asking the questions directly is that the guests have to think and answer for themselves. We can then judge how they answer and what they choose to avoid - as we learned today with HH.

I look forward to the other party leaders being similarly exposed, and I hope MNHQ has this in hand.

Re webchat format - I'd have assumed most people doing these (and especially politicians) would either have had a look at questions beforehand (because generally they are being posted from several days in advance) and draft responses. Or have a researcher/assistant do it.

Regarding speed of response, maybe MNHQ should point out that people like a decent number of questions answered, so letting MN staff type as well would be a good move.

iseenodust - sure, I know you didn't mean a PhD. I did not know there were that many female councillors, that is interesting as we are often told more women in power equals less abuse.

So, what new MN emoticon will be the legacy of this chat?

A pink battle bus?