MNHQ here: webchat with Harriet Harman MP on Monday 20 February at 1pm

[BojanaMumsnet]

Hello,

We’re pleased to announce a webchat with Harriet Harman MP on Monday 20 February at 1pm.

Harriet was twice Acting Deputy Leader of the Labour Party and she has spent 28 years on the Front Bench. She was elected as MP for Peckham in 1982 and has campaigned for women’s rights, including introducing the National Childcare Strategy, all women shortlists, the Equality Act and changing the law on domestic violence. She was at the forefront of Labour's efforts to reach women voters before the 2015 general election, leading to the infamous 'Pink Bus' being pranged in the MNHQ car park as Yvette Cooper left Mumsnet Towers.

Harriet’s recently published autobiography, A Woman’s Work, included her account of being sexually harassed by at least three men during her career, which hit the headlines (example here and here).

Please do join us on the day - Monday 20 Feb, at 1pm - or if you can’t make it, post a question in advance on this thread.

Please remember our webchat guidelines: one question each, with a follow-up to the webchat guest's response if appropriate; please don't keep posting 'what about me/please answer my question'; and please be civil/polite.

Thanks
MNHQ

Where's the webchat please?

Here, MeMyself1! Just post your question and see if it gets answered :-)

It's here MeMyself... but it appears to have ground to a halt.

Hi Harriet,

As labour seems to be hellbent on taking us out of the EU, despite most Labour voters voting remain, where do you think your voter base will lie in 2020?

@domesticslattern

Welcome to MN. Do you mind talking Brexit? as that's the big thing occupying my mind right now. Are you proud of how the Labour Party, as the chief opposition party, has performed since the Brexit referendum? Can you say why/ why not?

I was strongly for Remain, and even went on the Remain Campaign Bus with the Tory Prime Minister (!) to ensure that Labour supporters knew that we were for In. People criticized what we said as Project Fear, but I remain every bit as worried about the impact of Brexit as I was at the time, and the people who will suffer most will, as always, be those in the poorest regions and the poorest communities.

One of the big worries was that, when Leavers said "take back control" on immigration, people understood that to mean "cut immigration." Because EU citizens are so important, working in agriculture, public services and across every region, I can't see how the government will be cutting EU immigration, and that will cause anger and disappointment with democracy.

When you're in opposition, often the choices that face you are all bad. As a strong Remainer, I could see a good case for voting against Article 50 being triggered, but I think we lost that when we lost the referendum. So I voted with the PLP to trigger Article 50 so that we can now fight all the other issues that lie ahead, not least trying to maintain a strong economic relationship with Europe, particularly when Trump is pulling up the drawbridge against our exports to America.

Harriet, what do you think about the idea of a universal basic income - is it something that you think could work? If so, do you think it's politically achievable in this country and what are the challenges facing those who'd like to see it adopted?

Thank you for coming to do this webchat. I'm another big admirer of yours and am glad the question was put as to why you never ran for leader of the party. I am also interested in the issue of the silencing of women which has previously been alluded to by a pp - in particular the abuse of women on social media but also recently quite prominently in Parliament.

You are someone who has not been afraid to raise her head above the parapet in the past and I wonder where and how you draw the strength to face that sort of abuse and intimidation head on - and what advice you would give to other women wishing to stick up for women's rights in the public arena.

@tava63

Thank you for your hard work and commitment. I voted to Remain and whilst I am heartbroken at the outcome I am equally upset at how politicians (not you) have responded. It contrasts hugely with the response to the outcome of the Scottish referendum when there was a recognition that the voice of the 45 per cent needed to be acknowledged and the Smith Commission was set up. The 48 per cent of us who voted to remain have not been acknowledged and instead been told effectively to put up and shut up. The lack of debate in Parliament (similar to renewing Trident) is shocking - those who voted against are seen as 'brave souls' or 'traitors' not as professionals doing their job. How can the 48 per cent be confident that they have a voice too?

It depresses me when I see those who've taken a position criticising others of cowardice and congratulating themselves as "brave". Often it's just people hold strongly different views and attributing those views to personal characteristics misses the point. I don't think Liz Truss is being a coward in her handling of the judiciary and our prisons, I just think she is wrong.

Hi Harriet,

I am a massive fan of yours and have been for some time. I feel very much like the world has become more filled with hate and divisiveness in recent years - the Brexit vote was a protest vote, and so was Trump's election.

Do you agree that the narrative of politics has become more based on rhetoric of hate (such as Cameron's "hordes of migrants" comment in 2016) and how do you think the Labour party can solve it? What is the Labour party doing to ensure that the voices of tolerance and unity are being heard?

Hello Harriet,

Jess Phillips paid a very touching tribute to you in her excellent new book, saying you paved the way for women MP's. What can we expect from the next generation of female MP's, and how can we tackle lingering sexism on the left?

@CaliforniaHorcrux

Hello Harriet My son and I have been Labour Party members for many years but most times we've offered to help or get involved we've been ignored or looked over or forgotten etc. When you had the Pink Bus for the last GE I asked you on Twitter to let me know when it would be in my area and you said you'd get back to me but didn't, and I missed it. I was disappointed and frustrated as I wanted to talk about the Minimum Income For Spouse Visas which affected me. Would you be willing to look into improvements within the party for better volunteer co-ordination please?

I'm sorry you missed it - the truth is that advertising in advance where we were going became problematic because some "fathers' rights" campaigners used the advance notification to demonstrate in front of the pink bus and prevent us talking with anyone, so we ended up seeing people who were already there when we got there, rather than doing masses of advance notification - and that meant not only you lost out, but we missed out on the discussion. Their right to demonstrate obstructed our right to free speech, and they were were downright menacing. I should have called the police!

Hi Harriet,

I heard you on the radio recently telling a story about when, as Robin Cook's deputy, you missed an important parliamentary occasion as you'd promised to take your son to the cinema. You said that, after being initially furious with you, when you insisted you were just "not available" Cook made the leap to presuming you were having an affair, and switched instantly from fury to "conspiratorial glee". And yet had he known you were prioritising your child, and not a lover, he would still have been furious, and probably would have sacked you.

It's a brilliant, shocking story.

On a tangent from that: I am frequently shocked about how women's - and children's - rights seem to be thrown under the bus by the Labour Party whenever there is a conflict between those rights and the rights of a minority group. The way for example the grooming gangs in Rochdale, Rotherham, Oldham etc were allowed to keep operating for years after they were first identified because it was seen as "Islamophobic" to say that gangs of Muslim men were sexually abusing non-Muslim girls. This was with the collusion of Labour led councils: instead of being listened to, people were sent by those councils on racism awareness courses for saying that this was happening.

Even when the people speaking up are themselves part of that minority they are ignored - for example, when the Muslim Women's Network wrote to Corbyn about the way they are routinely blocked from standing for council election by sexist men in their communities, enabled by the local Labour Party apparatus - Jeremy did the fingers in ears thing and mouthed platitudes about the Labour Party being the party of equality etc, but completely failed to address their very real concerns.

I am a lifelong Labour voter and I take my hat off to women like you and Jess Phillips who have worked so hard to bring about change in women's lives, but I now find myself really struggling to support the Party.

I always used to see the Labour Party as the party for social justice, but I now see a huge problem with the liberal left - the problem of the "regressive left" as it's been called. I see reactionary, oppressive views being touted as "progressive" attitudes, nowhere more clearly than in the realm of women's rights. It seems the rights of any minority take precedence over the rights of women and children in the hierarchy of the left; and Robin Cook's total devaluing of your role as a mother seems to me to be part of that culture.

Which leads me (finally!!) to my question: do you agree that there is still a fundamental issue of sexism and misogyny in the Labour Party, and in liberal society in general, that needs challenging; and if so, what's the best way to go about it?

Hi Harriet,

I have no idea which party I would vote for at the next election as I've become disillusioned with all of the parties. Politicians seem to spend their time avoiding issues that are important to the voters, so voting for any party seems like nothing would change.

In light of that, I'm interested to know if there is a list of subjects that politicians are told to avoid at all costs when they attend discussions/webchats like this one? i.e Do you have to tow the party line or are you allowed to respond as per your own interests?

Hi Harriet,

MNHQ have asked that I not post.my question, but I would be grateful if you could address an issue that many posters have asked about.

Thanks

@MollyHuaCha

Hi Harriet,

The Conservatives have so far produced two female prime ministers. When can we expect a woman leader for the Labour Party?

Next time - here's hoping! We've got more Labour women MPs than all the other parties put together and Labour's the party that fights for equality.

But not only have we got a man leader at the moment, but both the leader and deputy are men.

Hi Harriet - looking forward to reading your book.
I have a teenage daughter who is fascinated with politics and I'd like to know would you recommend a career in politics for her? And if you had any reservations what would they be?

How do you feel about Tony Blair's recent Brexit speech?

Good question HelenDenver!

@AssassinatedBeauty

I'm not a Labour voter, but I would like to see the Labour Party as an effective opposition and a credible alternative to the Conservative Party. What do you think the Labour Party needs to do to achieve this?

I agree that a weak Opposition is bad for government. To be stronger, we need to be a credible alternative government, and to do this, we need more public support, which means listening to the public, not just telling them what we think. Right now, part of the reason why people are not listening to us is that they think we're not listening to them.

Amongst 'remainer' facebook groups that I follow there is a belief that Tony Blair should take the lead in the campaign to reflect the views of the 48%. However when I look at comment pages .... for e.g. the Sunderland Echo that move is seen as an own goal and would delight those who want to maintain the momentum to leave. So if Tony Blair causes a distraction - please consider taking the leadership role - many organisations turn to a woman as a leader when they face a 'glass cliff'. As the wonderful Jo Cox said there is more that unites us - but at the moment there seems no light at the end of the tunnel to get us to a more united point. Leadership that sets a united tone is urgently required - and you Harriet Harman are the most qualified to do that.

Hello!

The sexism and homophobia Angela Eagle faced when she ran was appalling, and left many young women in the party feeling dissapointed and isolated. How can women find their voice again in the party? How can we make ourselves (women and centrists alike) when confronted by Corbyn's rabble? The factionalism in the party is worrying, and I fear that women will be the first to jump ship because of the hostility from the hard left.

@Londonsburningahhhh

Hi Harriet,

What are you going to do after politics when you retired?

I will always care about politics even after I stop being an MP. I will be strongly encouraging the next generation of women to take forward all the equality and family issues which still remain too much on the margin of politics (but I'll be trying not to tell them what to do!) Each generation has to fight their causes in their own way. But one of the things I shall be standing up for is challenging the notion that women are past it when they are past 60 - why is it that women go from being too young straight to being too old, without ever being the right age? Whereas men seem to be the right age. When a man's young he's full of promise, when a woman's young, she's regarded as flakey. When he's got children, he's an impressive family man while she has "got too much on her plate". When he's older, he's a mature wise "silver fox" whereas she's "past it". Men always seem to be in their prime - when is ours?

@HelenDenver

How do you feel about Tony Blair's recent Brexit speech?

I think that he's right to highlight the dangers that Brexit poses for the country, and he's got every right to say it. I don't agree anyone should be gagged, especially not former Prime Ministers. Tony Blair led Labour to kicking the Tories out of government and winning three successive elections, which enabled us to bring in the Human Rights Act, the Freedom of Information Act, the Equality Act, the National Childcare Strategy, abolish Section 28, bring in Civil Partnerships, the National Minimum Wage... so I'm not going to go along with the criticism of him which seems so fashionable at the moment.

Harriet - what's the vibe in the PLP at the moment? I'm a Labour supporter but I have to say things don't look great from the outside, unfortunately

Thanks!

Hi Harriet,

In the wake of Brexit, you appeared on Women's Hour last summer and spoke about the potential issues surrounding newly won shared parental leave, and how Britain already had what was considered 'above average' and 'above EU standards' maternity rights for women.

But reports even just last autumn showed that businesses (and therefore men) have been slow to take advantage of the shared parental leave opportunities available.

How do you think we can promote this more within businesses and encourage it to become more the norm that either a mother OR a father can stay home and share the 'burden'?

It feels like until it becomes a norm, we'll not be able to be equal in the workplace as otherwise, women will always be viewed as 'she's going to take time out at some point, probably a year...'

Thank you :)