MNHQ Group 3

[AnnMumsnet]

Many thanks for agreeing to take part in this closed discussion thread. As you'll know, you all have an individual user name, separate to your on-site profile. So please feel free to be as open and frank as you like, without your views being read-across to your site profile.

The aim of these discussions is to discover if, how and why women's voting intentions are shifting and what you think about each of the party leaders.

We'll ask a few questions, allow you to think them over, respond, engage in a bit of discussion with other participants, and then we will pop back on the thread. We might want to tease out the reasons behind particular views or opinions and then will crack on with the next set of questions (on Thursday) and one more set over the weekend. Do feel free to re visit the thread at any point over the next week or so. We'll email you when we add a new set of questions.

Here are the questions to get you started

Thinking about when you decide which party to vote for, how important is the leader of the party in that decision?

Why?

What do you look for in a party leader? What makes a good party leader and what makes a bad one? What makes a good prime minister and what makes a bad one?

Thinking about the party you voted for at the 2010 General Election and the party you would vote for now, has it changed?

Why?
Why not?

Feel free to include any thoughts you might have - they don't have to be the conventional, just true to how you feel!

I would think DC or NC could probably manage on our budget. Possibly even EM could, but we are fortunate enough to have sufficient means to live on. I think all three take a rather higher-level view of things and would delegate the details.

I doubt any of them has much experience of living on a tight budget personally, but I am not sure that is particularly relevant to their ability to do their job. Despite all the talk and politics, I think that most of the financial running of the country is done by analysts, civil servants, the Bank of England, the bankers globally etc.

Oh, ffs. The childcare tax advantage is back on the cards.
IF both of us work, AND you have more than 2 kids under 5, it looks like your better off, but if one of you works and claims childcare vouchers, or both of you work, but only have one child, your worse off.

Why oh why are they making things more complicated, and no better for most, and claiming it as an improvement???? Just make it transparent, easy to administer, and allow childcare to be affordable!

DC (and probably NC) just dont have a clue about the impact of childcare costs on a family budget, so, further to my answer above, DC and NC obviously don't understand family budgets, and the impact childcare costs have on the cash flow.

How well or badly do you think the party leaders could manage your household finances effectively?

DC - depends on who he roped in to help him manage! It's not that hard to manage, expect he'd be ok if he kept an eye on it. The main problem is child care costs with me working part time and DD being 2 1/2 she costs around £700, sometimes more, a month. But I know that it's not forever, although my pessimistic side fully expects the free 15 hours to be cancelled just as soon as DD turns 3.
NC - as above, but think he'd do better
EM - no idea. I know nothing about him, even whether he has children.

For all of them, the real problem is not having enough to save or to put into a pension. I could do more, but at the moment that would involve cuttting back on luxuries, nice clothes for DD and me, eating out etc, which I am not really minded to do.

Imagine the party leaders had to live on your family budget, which do you think would cope best/worst? Why? What problems would they encounter?

DC - I think would find it more of a struggle, we can't afford proper holidays at the moment thanks to having bought a new house but again hoping it won't last forever, but really our income is pretty decent - although these answers are rather meaningless without figures. I earn 21k, DH 53k, child benefit cut accordingly and no other benefits. 1 DD only, main costs mortgage and childcare. As above with childcare costs and savings. We have big costs with the new house, redecoration, replacing items etc. Can't see DC doing his own DIY though!
NC - should be fine
EM - no idea

How well or badly do you think the party leaders could manage your household finances effectively?

In terms of managing my household finances, as opposed to living on my budget, then I would expect all 3 to be able to manage it very effectively. Managing a budget in principle should not be that difficult - taking the emotion out of the situation its just a question of crunching numbers and providing your income at least equals your expenditure then they should all manage it. In real life, actually living with the result is often very hard and making what should add up on paper, add up in real life can be a real challenge.

Imagine the party leaders had to live on your family budget, which do you think would cope best/worst? Why? What problems would they encounter?

David Cameron I feel woud fare worst, he appears to live a lifestyle which is a million miles away from mine (and mine is reasonably comfortable as far as I am concerned!). For some reason I don't feel that Ed Miliband would do too well either - he seems very well turned out and I suspect that what he spends on a single suit would equate to my entire months food budget - if not more.

Nick Clegg appears slightly more normal. He had his wife seem to operate well as working parents and I think they'd manage for a short time on my family budget. Not for long though - while we do afford everyday luxuries we don't have money left over for big budget holidays or flash cars and I think that even though Nick Clegg seems to live the more modest lifestyle of the 3 party leaders, it is still completely different to the normal lifestyle of even fairly comfortable 'normal' families.

This thread has made me realise how much I judge politicians by their appearance! I would not apply the same critieria to people I meet in real life so it is actually very unfair of me!

I'll mention Tim Farron again, I'd like to see him as Lib Dem party leader and he seems much more like a 'normal' person. I think he'd manage very well on my household budget.

So, these days how well or badly do you think the current main party leaders are doing on understanding the issues and concerned facing women like you
Who are woman like me? I can't speak for anyone but myself and would hate to think I only care about what happens to 'woman like me'. I care about issues that affect everyone. It is also hard to answer these questions when you consider that these privileged men probably don't spend much time worrying about issues that affect 'women like me', and other women.

First of all David Cameron?
I cannot not stand this man. He is happy to demonstrate publicly that he has little respect for women, and indeed is happy to champion policy to reflect that.

And then Nick Clegg?
He is more interested in furthering his own career.

And then Ed Miliband?
I genuinely don't know.

2) and how well or badly do you think they make sure or take account of women being heard in their party and in politics generally?
I get really riled that all parties make a song and dance about getting woman into power - all woman shortlists, for example - but have done nothing to consider why women aren't in power, what is stopping them.

First of all David Cameron?
Badly.

And then Nick Clegg?
And then Ed Miliband?
I don't know for these two

3) Finally for now - which party - if any - do you trust the most to look after the interests of women? Why? And which do you trust the least? And why?
I trust the Labour party the most, the Conservative party the least.

How well or badly do you think the party leaders could manage your household finances effectively?
Imagine the party leaders had to live on your family budget, which do you think would cope best/worst? Why? What problems would they encounter?

Ergh, this is such a puff piece question. Anyone can live on any budget for a day or two for 'fun'. I can't answer for these men, I have no idea. All I can do is try and think how they would perceive our budget and lifestyle against their policies.

I think my family is very privileged and comfortable. We have a good income, although not quite higher tax rate bracket. I am SAHM. We have our own house, two cars. We do budget carefully but it would not be hard for anyone to manage our finances. I think all parties would be in agreement that actually current policy must be working ok for us as we are comfortable. David Cameron would probably want me to be at work so he could get some more tax paid but this would make us not so comfortable. I hope Clegg and Miliband would support my right to be at home. I have no wish to be financially rewarded for it but I don't wish to be penalised for taking a few years out to be at home with my children.

I would probably answer very differently if I worked and had to pay for childcare. I can see this is a really stress and worry for working parents. I would hope the party leaders could see this and the strain it caused on the family budget.

How well or badly do you think the party leaders could manage your household finances effectively?
I would imagine all the party leaders could manage household finances effectively. Its just basic budgeting.

Imagine the party leaders had to live on your family budget, which do you think would cope best/worst? Why? What problems would they encounter?
Our family budget is adequate for our family so I would expect them all to cope to some extent. However, they all live extremely privileged lives and I would think they would find it difficult at first, but they are all intelligent and I think they would just get on with it. Some of the things they take for granted would be out of their reach, but some of the things we used to take for granted are now out of our reach. People cope with changes in circumstance, its difficult, but you get used to a new normal, you don't have to like it, but you get on with it.

1. So, these days how well or badly do you think the current main party leaders are doing on understanding the issues and concerned facing women like you.
   First of all David Cameron?
   Instinctively, don't like him. Child benefit cuts, dla cuts, benefits, childcare vouchers all make me angry although many of them don't directly affect me. He says what should be right but I have little trust
   And then Nick Clegg?
   Liberal democrats have a history of strong women in posts for being the right person for the job
   And then Ed Miliband?
   SOrry, no nothing on him.
   What about another party leader you know of (or one you think should/ could be a party leader) - please name them and then say: how well or badly do they do on this aspect?

2. and how well or badly do you think they make sure or take account of women being heard in their party and in politics generally?
   First of all David Cameron? And then Nick Clegg?
   And then Ed Miliband?
   What about another party leader you know of (or one you think should/ could be a party leader) - please name them and then say: how well or badly do they do on this aspect?
   Not sure that any of them are much good but nick clegg gives me most hope.

3. Finally for now - which party - if any - do you trust the most to look after the interests of women? Why? And which do you trust the least? And why?
   Lib dems give me hope but under the current government, they are never going to be able to be anything other than in the shadows.

How well or badly do you think the party leaders could manage your household finances effectively?
I would hope all the party leaders could manage on my family budget.

Imagine the party leaders had to live on your family budget, which do you think would cope best/worst? Why? What problems would they encounter?
Our budget is adequate for our family so I would hope that they could all cope but it's unrealistic as their budget is way, way above anything I could ever hope to have so although temporarily there would be no problem in managing, long term no doubt they would all struggle to adjust expectations.

Sorry, I vanished.
As far as the issues faced by women, I don't think any of the parties have a focus on this. If they did however I'd be more likely to vote for them.
However the nitty gritty of that is the difficulty of catering to many different types of women in britain.

I wouldn't currently trust any party to be interested in representing women.

The issues that affect me personally as a woman is employment, childcare, the nhs, healthcare and equality in the workplace.

As far as managing our budget, the leaders would be witness to what happens when the main breadwinner is made redundant while raising two small children. Four years into a recession that likely has not affected their own personal budgets one iota I'm sure they could all head tilt in sympathy and congratulate us on our efforts for me to become the main earner while DH's industry is non existent.Just what does a person do after 7 years to become an architect? Oh yes, crumble in a state of depression! They'd also congratulate our industriousness with starting a small business. However they'd soon realise how fucking futile it all is when you can't get a bank loan to expand said business, or to see that progression in my nhs job is limited by pay freezes and restructuring.
The maths which I'm sure they would do with their bastarding little calculators would demonstrate that it isn't worth DH working in his full time lowly paid retail job while working all evenings on his business start up due to the childcare costs associated with two full time working parents on crappy salaries.

How would they cope? Well they'll never have to will they. I expect they too would find the daily struggle to tread water would wear them down eventually. And they would wonder how we keep smiling for the kids because I'm not sure they could.

What problems would they encounter? Well there's two full time salaries and a business set up and childcare for two, the rent and mortgage for our housing association place with questionable neighbours and other normal bills (no holidays, no sky tv, shitty car, second hand clothes) er, there's no fucking money people.That's the problem you'll encounter. Good luck!