Live webchat with Harriet Harman MP on Tues Nov 25th 1-2pm

[HelenMumsnet]

We're pleased to announce that, as part of our ongoing Home Front debate, we've invited Harriet Harman MP to drop by MNHQ for a live webchat on Tuesday November 25th at 1pm.

As well as being Deputy Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the House of Commons, Harriet is Secretary of State for Equalities and Minister for Women.

Please join us to put your questions to Harriet on anything from the Government's plans for flexible working to Gordon's performance in the present economic crisis.

And, as usual, you're welcome to post any questions here in advance if you can't make it on the day.

HH as pointless as ever then. Nothing changes (she was my MP once! useless then as well).

You've got better at not actually answering questions over the years though.

Surely people like Harriet could invest in some voice recogniton software?

SHe might have been able to answer a few questions that way!

She's an MP.
And not just any old MP, the deputy leader of the labour party. She would have had to be very careful what she said.
Couldn't really expect more tbh.

I think it could have been planned better, in terms of HH knowing what she was letting herself in for, and HH preparing a bit more with questions, researching previous webchats etc.

THank you MNHQ. You've been getting in some great guests.

There's no way she could have been expected to answer on all those issues in 1 hour though. Even if she could type a bit faster.

I think it would be better for everyone if politicans were given a time slot to answer questions on one specified topic. Then they could go into detail with considered answers.

After all, what actually matters is what their policies are, how they will effect us, and even if we can help change them - not if we can catch someone out.

I am interested in what people expect from government ministers who do these chats. All they can do is defend their policies.

They can't make up new policies on the hoof and hopefully we would not wish them to.

They cannot make new policy announcements (even if they have been previously thought out an agreed in Cabinet) because they have committed to tell Parliament first if policy changes.

They cannot admit weaknesses with existing policies without risking their jobs, risking a huge media who-ha about "u-turns" or committing themselves to a change in policy (which they should never do without consulting minsiterial colleagues).

So what do we expect from these "chats"???

Well I'm totally pissed off that she didn't answer my question about making sexism as socially unacceptable as racism.

She's supposedly been a life-long feminist and she has nothing to say on the subject of mysogyny?

Pah.

She didn't answer my housing question either but I can forgive her for that becuase it's not her portfolio. But not to answer a question about sexism and mysogyny... no excuse for it.

May I just say thank you for your response Ms Harman.

Treasure it candlewax, it's rare.

Can we have Johnny Depp next time? Can we, can we?

agree with you Dittany (faints)

I am a big fan of HH, I'm amazed she fitted us in at all!

We did sound a little like we'd been drinking Fruit Shoots for elevensies

Well she didnt answer my question. I have just caught up so have written to her instead.

But my question was asked days ago.

And it was a sober one about an area of interest to her.

I'm miffed that she ignored it. Miffed I tell you.

But what could she possibly answer LittleBella?

She could have given pointless platitudes that sexism is as bad as racism and homophobia, but platitudes probably would not have satisfied.

And in the real world what do you want her to do? Agree with your suggestion that in playgrounds sexist remarks will be recorded??? So every little boy that says "girls smell" and every girl that says "boys are dirty and have nits" gets a black mark (with all the paper work that entails for pressed teachers)?

Even if that is what you wanted she couldn't make policy up on the hoof. Our government works through a system of collective responsiblity - the whole Cabinet have to agree new lines together.

Oh I don't know.

I wanted some kind of acknowledgement that there's some political will behind taking sexism as seriously as racism. That women's human rights are as important and to be taken as seriously as everyone else's. Or even an admission that there is no political will behind that agenda and that there needs to be and what her experience has been of trying to push that agenda.

Oh by the way someone earlier on said "you are financially better off as single parent on a low wage. free school dinners, free uniforms, paid housing, discounted childcare."

Er no. You get the fourth one on the list. As a low paid single parent, you don't get any of the others, why do people continue to promote these myths?

totally agree with dittany and artichokes re HH. I think the recent law changes on trafficked women and prostitution are fantastic. Good for HH and JS. I can't understand why any woman (or man for that matter) could possibly disagree with them. IT is modern day slavery not Belle du Jour for the vast majority of prostitutes

Yes, absolutely molly. HH has done some really heroic stuff over the last year (not just on the prostitution front - other things too). I think we should be erecting a statue to her in Trafalgar Square, quite frankly.

She seems oblivious to the fact that despite all the equality legislation we now have that valuable health professionals with 10+ years experience all being lost to the public sector as the NHS/Local government despite all their fine words because they refuse to employ people flexibly and when they do employ us they don't treat the same as full time employees. I don't know about you Cali, but the advice to go to your Union pretty much sucks as I can't even afford to pay Union subs!

Hmm I've softened towards her in recent years because she has done some good stuff, but I've never quite forgiven her for doing the men's dirty work and cutting one parent benefit when they first got in. For her it was just a policy decision and she chose to go along with it for the sake of her career (wrongly as it happens, because they sacked her a year after anyway) but for a lot of lone parents and their children, it was a terrible blow and meant real financial hardship for a couple of years. Her justification was that it needed to be done to herald the other changes (and there's no doubt that this govt have done more for LP's than the Tories did, but let's face it that's not hard) the ones that were introduced later, but 2 years of financial desperation when you're a child is a long time. I think a lot of people remember her for that and haven't forgiven her.

That's a good point LB, I'd forgotten that.

I suppose, for me, HH is an example of what happens if you swallow some smaller slights/indignities/policies you completely disagree with. In her case, she's finally in a position now to really achieve some significant stuff as far as women are concerned. I'd say these are the first serious feminist policies I can remember a government enacting (being too young for the abortion act). She wouldn't be in this position if she'd done a Claire Short and stuck to her principles without compromise (not that I've anything against Short - but she's not in a position to do much about anything these days, is she?)

How Harriet Harman voted on key issues since 2001:

Has not voted on a freedom of information act.
Voted for introducing a smoking ban.
Voted for introducing ID cards.
Voted for introducing foundation hospitals.
Voted for introducing student top-up fees.
Voted for Labour's anti-terrorism laws.
Voted for the Iraq war.
Voted against investigating the Iraq war.
Voted for replacing Trident.
Voted for the hunting ban.
Voted for equal gay rights.