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MNHQ

Q&A with Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg - catch up here

21 replies

KateMumsnet · 25/03/2015 10:24

Hello all

At lunchtime today we'll be holding a live, in-person Q&A session with Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, with an audience composed entirely of Mumsnetters.

With luck (and a decent wireless connection) we'll be live-blogging the whole thing, so do join us between 12.45 and 2pm to hear how the DPM responds to MNers' searching questions - and let us know what you think as the session unfolds.

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MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 25/03/2015 12:30

Hello

Thanks for the extra questions - we're going to have a room full (filling up nicely now!) of MNers all ready to ask questions so we can't promise we'll be able to get Nick to answer questions from the thread as well, we're afraid, although we'll do our best of course.

We'll start posting on here when we're ready to go!

MNHQ

KateSMumsnet · 25/03/2015 12:54

@MrsAidanTurner

where do we watch it? I am confused ( and lost)

Don't be lost! We'll be updating this thread from the event, and also on our Twitter channel, so you can follow along that way. We also have our video people here, so there will be a video of the questions - we'll let you know when that is ready.

I'm with JaneMumsnet at the event, it's v exciting! Come and say hello if you're here too.

MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 25/03/2015 12:55

No sorry - no live video feed although we are videoing it and will upload some clips ASAP (today hopefully). For now will just be the usual low-fi text-based system we're afraid...

Just waiting for Nick to get here from PMQs and then we'll be underway.

MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 25/03/2015 13:05

OK Nick Clegg is here and we're ready to go...

MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 25/03/2015 13:10

First question from an MNer: 'In the event of another coalition, which of your politicies would you negotiate on?'

Clegg says: the era of single party government is probably over, long term. Coalition government is becoming more likely - so all parties need to decide which policies they will dig their heels in on. We put our priority policies on the first page of our last manifesto - and that's probably what we will do again. Balancing the books, raising the personal allowance, a commitment to green politics/environment, filling the £8bn NHS funding gap and funding mental health, and expanding school spending are what's likely to be on there.

MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 25/03/2015 13:15

Next question: what have you learned from the tuition fees saga?

Answer: that no matter how proud we are of some of our achievements in government, if there's one policy you don't implement that's what people will remember. There's no point me whinging about that. I didn't have a mandate to deliver the full LibDem manifesto in government. The tuition fees deal we got was the fairest we could get - and despite predictions that it would shut out disadvantaged kids, that hasn't happened. The old fees system involved paying upfront - the new system is in effect a progressive graduate tax (and I wish we'd called it that!) and more and more youngsters are now going to uni.

On the future of higher ed: we're not going to make implausible commitments - we've learned that lesson. I think the pinch point in the system isn't tuition fees repayments; it's upfront living costs for students. If there was any spare cash knocking around, that's where I'd spend it.

MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 25/03/2015 13:20

Next q: I'm work at a Citizen's Advice Bureau - and we see more and more people who are being failed by the welfare system. The Big Society has failed.

A: There was undoubtedly a need to reform aspects of the benefits system - it was Byzantine, too much means testing, some incentive to not work. The fundamental principle of Universal Credit, which doesn't undermine the incentive to work, is broadly a good thing and that's what we've tried to do. Increasing the personal allowance takes 3.3m low-paid people out of tax altogether, and we think some of the other childcare and school provisions have helped lower earners.

I'm uncomfortable about welfare sanctions though - I think they're a bit too trigger-happy; the guillotine comes down too quickly. It's fair enough to attach strings to benefits payments, but we need to look at how effective they are - we're looking at a possible traffic light/yellow card system that might provide considerable help to people who get caught out by the rapid imposition of sanctions.

[Nick follows this up by saying how civilised the session is compared with PMQs; an MNer points out that this is because of the female-dominated nature of the audience]

The MNer who asked the question follows up with some details of a RL CAB case she's dealing with in which a young man was forced to spend a night on the streets before any local agencies were allowed to offer him any help.

MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 25/03/2015 13:23

Q: do you feel personal responsibility for the demise of the LibDem vote?

A: If you spend all your time in politics worrying about how to curry popularity, you'd never do anything. Government involves doing difficult and unpopular things. I didn't come into politics to make the biggest cuts in a generation - would I have chosen to come into government at a different time? That would have been lovely. But you have to deal with the cards your dealt. I'm not embarrassed; I'm incredibly proud. I think we stepped up the plate and have been plucky, brave and done the right things for the right motives.

MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 25/03/2015 13:26

Q: In a coalition this time around - Labour or Conservative?

A: it's not a matter of personal whim; we did what we did because it was the only way the numbers would add up to a government. It will be the same this time around; perhaps only one combination of parties will give a stable government - that will be the starting point for it all.

Q: Are you going to build more houses in the south-east?

A: Yes. New garden cities in an arc between Oxford and Cambridge. We've had some disagreements with the Conservatives about this in government.

MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 25/03/2015 13:30

Q: do you see any benefit in taking maternity pay away from workplaces, making it a state benefit and introducing more universal childcare entitlements?

A: a massive 'yes' to the last bit. There needs to be more free provision to fill the gap between mat leave ending and free childcare entitlement starting.

Q: Should manifestos be published further in advance of the election?

A: if you'd lived through the truly laborious way the LibDems produce the manifesto... maybe you've got a point. Now we've got fixed-term parliaments and everyone knows when the elections are, we should bring them forward.

Q: what are LibDems going to do about making renting more secure for people in the south-east?

A: legislation about revenge evictions is underway and our manifesto will include an idea called 'rent to own' - a new sort of tenancy with housing associations that allows you too develop a share of ownership as you pay rent.

MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 25/03/2015 13:34

Q: question about long waiting lists for CAMHS services

A: it's egregious - the state of CAMHS is woeful. Two big things: as of next month (April 5) the same access and waiting times standards will apply to mental health as currently apply to physical health. This has never happened before. And we've announced a quarter-billion pound investment in CAMHS.

Q about the NHS relying on expensive agency staff. Isn't it better to use the money to keep beds open and wards fully staffed?

A: there's only one way around this - employ more people sustainably within the NHS. It's under huge pressure (ageing population etc) and some trusts are running to stand still. We need to fill the NHS funding gap - £8bn by the end of the next parliament. We have a plan to fill that gap - but we also have to do something about demand; social care doesn't work well within the NHS, with people with age-related conditions in hospital beds.

MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 25/03/2015 13:38

Q: does it matter to you that your party has a lower proportion of women MPs than Labour and Conservative parties - and what are you going to do about it?

A: yes of course it matters. And we don't have any BAME MPs either. It matters massively - modern Britain isn't represented in our party. Our dilemma is that we don't have many safe seats; we have to work very hard to win seats. We're making sure that MPs standing down are being replaced by women and/or BAME candidates where possible. We've got a support and mentoring programme for those candidates. If that doesn't work and it continues to be this unrepresentative after the election, I personally think we should introduce quotas. That's my personal view - it may feel uncomfortable for some people in our party.

MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 25/03/2015 13:46

Q: the child sex abuse inquiry - do you regret your decision to initially refuse to back the inquiry?

A: we quite quickly moved to the view that what was being uncovered was so horrific that it had to be dealt with via a proper inquiry. I don't quite remember the chronology but we're all in agreement. It's shaken everyone to the core - it's taken society a while to adapt to the horrendous depravity that's been outlined.

Q: do you really believe that nobody knew it was happening - or was there a cover-up by successive governments?

[Clegg splutters a bit at this] A: Of course I don't believe there was a government cover-up. It's such a hidden thing. Maybe individual parts of British society knew what was going on - but just because you can point to an individual allegation, I don't think you can say it's a society-wide thing that everyone knows about. These are depraved individuals - I don't think you can assume that everyone knew.

MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 25/03/2015 13:52

Q: what is Clegg going to do to ensure that people with acute mental health conditions get treatment close to home?

A: the situation is very, very patchy. We spend a lot but we need to spend more. How that money percolates down to individual health trusts and is spent at that level is very inconsistent and I've found it really frustrating - too many local health bodies make decisions that short-change mental health services. I think the message it getting through now that the government spending on mental health needs to be passed on to the appropriate services.

Q: in real terms, mental health funding has been cut by 8%. You've got great staff working for very little money - it needs to change.

A: [Clegg says 'no' about the 8% cut] It's just not the case that real terms spending has gone down 8%.

Q: what do you think about the anti-terror and security bill (CTS)?

A: [Clegg rejects the allegation that the bill requires government agencies to spy on people] It simply doesn't do that. I've crawled over it in minute detail. I'm a liberal to my core - I've got more battle scars to show for it than most British politicians. The Prevent strategy just doesn't do what you're saying it does.

MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 25/03/2015 13:54

And that's it - he's off to his next appointment - so sorry we couldn't get to the questions from this thread but the MNers in the room were very determined!

MNHQ

JustineMumsnet · 25/03/2015 14:50

Hi all, Nick Clegg and team have promised to do a pre-election webchat so those of you who couldn't make it in person to this event will get the chance to put questions we hope.

MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 25/03/2015 15:28

We're really sorry if there was a discrepancy with the mic - it did make its way around both 'sides' of the circle (we think!) but many apologies if one side got a bit more airtime than the other. We'll try to do better next time (if we do something like this again).

Thought you might like to see that the Telegraph says we got a scoop on Clegg's comments about quotas, plus a couple of other bits.

And his remarks about benefits sanctions being too 'trigger happy' are reported here.

MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 25/03/2015 15:32

And some pictures of the event here for anyone who wants a look.

MNHQ

KateMumsnet · 25/03/2015 19:49

Hello all

A couple of videos from today's MNQs event: Nick Clegg on what he wants to do about , and on .

Nick Clegg on quotas for LibDem MPs
MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 26/03/2015 11:14

@WhistlingPot

Thanks DeathStar, that's helpful.

I appreciate MNHQ have to paraphrase, but it did seem his response was cleverly avoiding the question. His answer given was basically that "you can't assume everyone knew" - which is true; but the question wasn't "did everyone know?" it was "do you really believe that nobody knew?".

There's an important if subtle difference imo.

It's a shame the whole thing hasn't been put on youtube (or has it?) so we can see his answers in context, rather than snippets.

Many apols - we were indeed paraphrasing frantically throughout and the version here isn't verbatim; very sorry if we missed an important subtle distinction. We'll see if we can get the clip for you

And many thanks to all who came yesterday - hope you enjoyed it.

MNHQ

RowanMumsnet · 26/03/2015 14:05

OK . Afraid it's audio not video - this is purely because a rogue MNHQer was standing in front of our camera so the footage is just five minutes of the back of someone's head. Sorry.

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