Live webchat with Rachel Reeves, Labour shadow for work and pensions; THURSDAY 26 FEBRUARY 11.30-12.30

[RowanMumsnet]

We’re pleased to say that we’ll be welcoming Rachel Reeves MP to MNHQ for a webchat on Thursday February 26 at 11.30am.

Rachel is the MP for Leeds West, and Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions; among other things her brief includes the ‘bedroom tax’ (also known as the ‘removal of the spare room subsidy’ or ‘under-occupancy penalty’), which she has said Labour will abolish.

Before becoming an MP, she worked as an economist for the Bank of England, the British Embassy in Washington and at Halifax Bank of Scotland. Her second child is due in June and there was some controversy earlier this week when she announced her intention to take maternity leave should Labour form the government after the General Election in May.

Please join us on Thursday at 11:30 if you can; as ever, if you can’t join us live, then leave your question on this thread in advance. (And please remember our webchat guidelines.)

Thanks
MNHQ

I will never own a mansion.

Reeves is on Questiontime now.

Meh. I'm in bed. Not worth getting up for.

Interesting webchat and I'm pleased Luckystar asked about self employed fathers and paternity pay because I think Rachel's answer to my question was a bit of a politician's answer (ie it told us nothing new not answered the question). It's my fault though, I should have worded my question more carefully.

The employment tribunal stuff sounds interesting as does the zero hours contracts stuff which I'm not in favour of banning - too blunt an instrument when the issue really is exploitation of workers which anyone with any morals at all should be against.

I would also like to make it clear that I am genuinely self employed. I have full control over the work I do/do not do, I pay my taxes and class 2 and 4 NI... but I don't have any of the benefits of an employee like enhanced maternity pay (MA is less than SMP for first 6 weeks), no holiday pay, no pension, no sick pay and no redundancy pay if the work dries up and no mandatory breaks as per the working time regulations. These are all things people do get with 0 hours contracts because they are based on the time worked - or at least they should be and any employer failing to give their employees these basic employment rights should be held to account and punished. The trouble is as Rachel says, there's no point having a right without a remedy to enforce it.

Thanks for looking at my question. I also hope that I like Labours proposals.

Just to make it clear I did mean that some universities must charge more than £9k per home student, I wasn't thinking of individual courses. So an institution in London where land is expensive and only teaches studio based courses and employs technicians as well as academic staff- well ALL their courses will cost more than £9k.

Sorry didn't watch you on QT, got back from work late and went straight to bed.

I turned QT off. Too boring.

Now I have had a bit of a chance to look up todays anouncment I can say I am not madly keen on the policy and what I have read doesn't really answer my question.

YY to Funnyossity.

Was the edit unfair to you too Gopher?

more that I'm going to vote for the bs anyway but can they stop calling themselves Labour.

Not sure who I'll be voting for yet. But it certainly won't be Labour. And Milibands feeble effort to reduce student fees by £3,000 a year is pathetic. And a massive £400 a year to help less well off students. Probably the cost of a couple of meals out for folk like Jack Straw. Or about 10 minutes work. I can't stand the Labour party now although I voted for them last time.

I dis think about starting a thread suggesting Labour ought to name change but thought far too few people would even care!

I think it would be more truthful if they changed their name, as the Labour name is linked to Socialist principles which they no longer hold. I don't think they would actually benefit from it in terms of votes. As truthfulness isn't necessarily something one associates with politicians, may be it's an idea that's never going to work.

@RachelReevesMP

[quote Luckystar82] I'm pregnant and my husband is self employed and on a relatively low income. He would like to take two weeks paternity but in the current system he can't because he is not entitled to statutory paternity pay. Will this change under labour?

Thank you for the question and I will check that with Gloria de Piero who is our Shadow Minister with responsibility for this.[/quote]

Hi Luckystar82,

Here, as promised, is Rachel's response to your question. Thanks, MNHQ

Hello Luckystar82, I know self-employed people have had a tough time over the last few years. As you say, the new shared parental leave that’s starting in April doesn’t extend to self-employed partners. This was something the government looked at in 2011 as part of a wider consultation on flexible parental leave, but the proposals were dropped. I know how important it is for families to be able to spend time together in those early weeks. Labour will be reviewing the way the new shared parental leave is working and as part of this we will look again at the issue of extending it to those who are self-employed. I wish you all the best for the new baby.