Gordon Brown on Mumsnet this Friday (16th October) lunchtime between 1-2 pm

[JustineMumsnet]

We're delighted to announce that the Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, will be logging on to Mumsnet for a live webchat on Friday (tomorrow) lunchtime from 1 to 2. The PM is ready to answer Mumsnetters' questions on a wide-range of policy issues from the economy to education and from childcare to climate change.

As you know we're not great ones for rule books here at MNHQ, but we'd like this to be as useful and enlightening an event as it can be, for all involved. We aren't going to pre-moderate or pre-select questions - the format will be as per usual - but given the likely popularity of this webchat, the sheer number of you all and our past experience of trying to fit everything in, we've come up with a few ground rules which we'd be very grateful if you'd follow.

Guidelines for MN webchat with PM

1. To allow as many folks as possible to be involved, please restrict your questions to one per member plus a follow up question if appropriate, i.e. once you've had a response. (NB don't even think about name changing to ask another, we'll be watching!).

1. Please keep your question reasonably brief (we'll not doing a word count but it will increase your chance of getting an answer, we suspect, if you don't bang on for paragraphs)

1. It's highly unlikely he'll be able to answer everyone's question but we'll make every effort to bring common themes to his attention. Please don't be too disappointed if your specific question doesn't get answered and do try not to keep posting "What about me?". He can't answer them all and he is the PM after all - so has a quite few time constraints.

1. Obviously you're free to voice your opinion but do be civil/polite - the PM is our guest on Mumsnet so, whatever your politics, please afford him the same cordiality you would if he stopped by your own house.

Many thanks - feel free to put your question up in advance if you can't make the live chat on Friday lunchtime.

I'd really like ot hear your views on childcare tax breaks fo rhte self-employed.

Mr Brown,

I have a 3 year old who will be starting school in Jan 2011. I would prefer her to start September 2010. I'm an experienced teacher and have seen first hand how a delayed start can affect a bright child. In light of the Rose Review, do you plan to consult parents and teachers and give them a say in when their child should start school? Alternatively, how about a move to the Scottish system? A single point of intake with no child being younger than four and a half seems much fairer to me.

OST.

Oh Capt Nancy well said

Our local government have just made redundant the only two breastfeeding counsellors and family support workers in our rural area (w. Cornwall). Now we will have to rely on over stretched midwives to support us in the early weeks of breastfeeding which just won't happen. No more breastfeeding support, no morefamily support workers, no more teenage parent 'help' classes. It will only get worse, now. I, like many others, needed their support.

How do you feel about the findings of the Cambridge Primary Review - specifically delaying formal learning until the age of 6, and carryong on with play-based learning as featured in many other countries' education systems?

I was raised in another country, and a different education system, that did not begin formal schooling until age 6. In addition, I was born in December, so did not start school until age 7. I was so ready and eager to learn, and always loved school, never found any subject a problem, and am glad I was "older" and more ready to learn than children who were hot-housed and pushed into their first year at age 5.

Will the Cambridge Primary Review's findings be listened to and implemented, or is everyone far too complacent about carrying on with the way education is structured in Britain?

Just seen he already sort of answered my bank one, so am going to ask a cheeky extra q:

My husband cycles to work though London traffic everyday. Cyclists are regularly killed by lorries which do not have the sufficient mirrors to see the street around them. New lorries must have these mirrors but there is no law to make existing lorries fit them and so people continue to die (have you seen the white painted ghost bikes that appear when a cyclist has been killed? I have seen two in last month .) More people would cycle and you would hit green targets faster if you made the roads safer - are there any plans to compel lorry owners to fit these mirrors?

Hello Mr Brown
My question is about the expenses scandal:
MPs have obviously been given carte blanche to use expenses as they see fit - there were no rules in place. if MPs are using expenses in this way because they feel they are not being paid enough, would it not make sense to raise the salary and impose rules on expense claims similar to what business people in the private sector have to comply with?
There would be far less cause for scandal if this was done surely?

Dear Mr Brown,

Is there any proposed financial assistance for mothers who choose to stay at home and care for their children rather than go out to work and take advantage of the childcare financial benefits and working family tax credits. There seems to be no balance to reward or assist childcare to take place in the home as well as for working parents who use childcare out of the home.

I would vote for any party who made this a policy issue and most of my friends, including those who work and use nurseries, agree that it is a disgrace that there is no financial benefit to caring for your own child at home.

I posted my question regarding your defence policy and I wanted to add that I am not a natural Labour voter but I still want to be an informed voter. Defence issues will be something that will affect how I vote and how my husband votes, so I'd like to know where you stand compared to the other main parties.

I have two small boys (3 and 1 years old) and their father is currently in Afghanistan, so this is an issue that's very close to us.

On antoher note, I think it's great that you're on here "talking" to the elctorate about the issues that directly affect us.

To RTKangaMummy and others,

In cinema terms I need to take my sons to see Up. On TV I watch a lot of sport. I used to be a teacher at a university and loved it. You've asked about the press - more and more people are hearing news direct on brilliant sites like mumsnet.

Gordon

We've signed up to mandatory 80% reductions in CO emissions by 2050, but (aside from any small impact the recession is having) levels still seem to be rising, or at best stable. How do you propose to meet this committment, given that 40 years is a short time to change people's lifestyles and habits? Why are you not investing heavily in renewables to start the ball rolling?

dear gordon

thank you for your childcare answer. can I draw your attention back to one part of your reply where you said:

we want to use the money to extend free nursery places to many thousands more 2 year olds

Will this apply in Scotland? I am aware that the Scottish education system etc is different from the rest of the UK and this may be an issue for the scottish government, but I would really like to see something like this in Scotland and would appreciate your response on this.

Dear Prime Minister,

When it comes to children below school age, do you think that it is important for their emotional and psychological well being to be cared for by one of their own parents, or do you feel that both parents should be working for the benefit of the country's GDP and it makes to difference to the child's emotional and psychological well being to spend a lot of time being cared for by a paid child care provider?

Morningpaper - you ask if I consider myself an unlucky Prime Minister? Not when I'm sitting here at mumsnet!

Dear Mr Brown, will you still be leader of the opposition after the next election or will you take a job outside politics and what ever happened to Prudence she seems to have left a few years ago and never returned.

Ohh do take him to see Up. Its a fab film

Ooh Crumblequeen I agree

Dear Gordon

I'm sick of working my backside off to pay tax to support people who don't want to work. My husband and I are watching every penny with one child, yet I know of people who are having baby after baby simply so they can avoid returning to work, knowing the state will suppor them.

How can this be fair?

I'm not exaggerating, or slurring mums who stay at home. I'm simply talking about people breeding for income here!!

I second restlessmog's question on what is being done to improve child protection services.

Now Mr Brown, don't try and soft soap us...

Oh PM, you are so smooth!