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.

Hah, the times sit quoted me! ok not by name but still...

the thing is, he will have had someone typing for him ( I hope) and unless they are really good, then they are going to precis what he is replying, and if they aren't any good then the tone of his voice is lost (witness how cool Kim was, it was all so kim, but i `bet she didn't type it, but her voice is so strong that its hard to dilute) add to that some policywonk(not ours, obviously!) saying, ooh no, that's too familiar/tricky/offscript then its going to be leaden unless he takes control on it it and insists on replying with his gut to some of the questions....

which I kind of think is the whole problem for Gordon, nobody knows his voice...

i'm a bit baffled by all the gasps of disappointment, he did fine. could've lived without that 'ask them' weirdy rhetoric at the end (er, no, love, we're asking you) but apart from that he was fine.

what did you expect, that he was going to start blethering about the fruit shoots and nice ham? and since when have webchats ever been good anyway? they're always rubbish. piers morgan was absolutely hateful, david cameron just the same as gordy, webchat by committee. (although swoon at tanya byron iirc).

i will, however, expect to see every single question answered by some wonk or other by monday morning, it's the least they can do, having blanded out GB like that. (he must get sick of saying he's 'passionate' about this and the other, when what he really wants to do is knock heads together.)

and i wasn't joking about the focus group, either. if the labour party uses the brains god gave it, it'll realise that we are right at the coal face here, every damn day, and all human life is here.

see you next time, Gordon, and i hope you get in again because the alternative, to be run from the Bullingdon Club, is sickening.

I agree aitch.

It wasn't like he was going to totally revise labour party policy live online because of our cutting edge incisive analysis, was it? Did people really expect him to smack his forehead and go "oh shit, you're right, of course we shouldn't scrap childcare vouchers! How could I have been so dense?"

And, given the time, he couldn't provide a detailed analysis of the exact reasoning and research behind each policy.

He could, however, have mentioned his favourite biscuit. That omission I am baffled by [purses lips]

Here's the archived version - much easier to read.

No, it wasn't a car crash. But it was pretty dull. A real missed opportunity to hear the real Gordon...

Because I know he is charming and funny, and I just keep hoping that this comes through somewhere sometime...

Well done - Gordon, thanks for coming on to talk with us.

The hateful Piers Morgan was the best because he was the most entertaining

Tanya Byron was good, had forgotten aobut her

thanks justine....a picture of you all with the pm at work too!!

i agree with aitch. you did well Mr G. and don't want the bullingdon club running the county either.

I think he did well, but then I have a soft spot for him. But he didn't answer my question. Damn!!!!

Well done MN!

I think he did well too. I can't see how he could have done much better considering the time and the number of questions and the detail needed to give comprehensive answers. But then I've got a soft spot for him too, I think he looks very huggable. If I met him I would find it hard not to lean.

Flannel Flannel Flannel. Is it too much to ask for a bit of LEADERSHIP from our prime minister. I'm fed up of politicians telling me what they think I want to hear - I want some leadership.

Very disappointing

I thought he was good. He was His people were good on detail.
Politicians are always going to be politicians, even when they're on Mumsnet.

kathy kathy kathy: the Prime Minister answered my question: didja see?

Can anyone explain to me why his responses on the childcare vouchers weren't satisfactory? I don't understand this issue, not ever having used them myself (and I'm with Aitch - the self-employed are seriously underserved by all these childcare policies).

interesting point, bounjour. what would leadership mean to you in this instance? would you respect someone who tossed out policies willy nilly just because a bunch of mums on the internet told him to?

gawd, it must be so difficult to do that job, you just cannae win imo. he was fine. there was no damascene conversion, he did not slap his head and anoint policywonk to head the government just because we all think she would be perfect... which is as it should be tbh. we vote for these people, more fool us if we don't like them.

Actually agree with every singly thing Aitch has posted on the entire thread

Interesting point on the AlphaMummy blog: 'not once did GB disagree or debate with the posters' points'. It would have been fantastic for him to say 'Sorry, but I disagree with what you've said, and here's why...' - the Married Couples Allowance q was probably the closest he came to that, and our response to his answer was almost entirely positive.

AND the bikes, pw, the sodding BIKES. that was just a slap in the face tbh.

LOLOL x-post

lol was it? heh heh.

Bikes is very good point, yes (tho I work from home so not strictly necessary for me. Though if anyone is interested in offering me a tax-deductible stairlift and dumb waiter I'd be made up.)

I was saying to OBM earlier on that the prob with GB is that he's rubbish at the synthetic authenticity that Blair and Cameron excel at, and that the British public love, idiots that they are. So he should just stick to actual authenticity, which in this case might well involve him throwing virtual office furniture at us and telling us that we're silly bints. People would vote for him in droves then.

It was such a cut and paste job!

Thing is, I actually like Gordon Brown. He's one of the few conviction politicians, but he doesn't exactly help himself does he? He didn't engage, he didn't really do much other than regurgitate Labor Party policy.

yup, works for me!