This was a good webinar to listen too.. Particularly as a retired nurse/midwife and as a mother and grandmother. My career built round both roles of mother and clinician. It was an eye opener how the MPs that are mothers be they new mums to mums of teenagers have to juggle their roles.. They have a right to be both Mother and MP.. We sure need more nurturing caring compassion in politics and it would seem that we women can offer this... well with exception of Maggie Thatcher who took on masculine dictator power control and shed her femmine side! Until her son got lost then her mother side penetrated her politician side as she authorised action to find him! But in honesty despite being a Labour woman when we did have a female PM with twins and two degrees I had high hopes of compassion being in the Tory party...I was wrong! Losing all to her dictatorship and induced recession she failed us all!
Tonight I heard very caring passionate women that are dedicated to their role as MPs and to their roles as Mothers... But it would seem that the system in parliament causes as lot of issues. It seems easier for those in London constituencies but for those around the country the geographical distance from home to parliament can be a major issue. Some with children in nursery do bring their children to London for a few days as week and the children have to adapt to nursery in London and nursery for other part of week in their home town.
For MPs pregnant and with new babies it can be a particular issue as Tulip highlighted from her difficult pregnancies and birth.. She had me in tears as I am in the campaign to help #FreeNazanin.. and Tulip is Richard's MP.. she was so passionate about his case that even with a new baby she saw him with Jeremy Corbyn to see how to help him and Nazanin in Iran. If only I could have helped Tulip as a retired midwife mother and grandmother over that time! Bless her she is a star in my eyes the way she cares.
Baroness Helene Hayman was interesting to listen too from her early days as an MP with a baby.. She highlighted the media criticism to make me think we have had social trolls around for sometime.. wishing to hurt those that are trying their best to serve their constituency and bring a family up. But she rightly pointed out that men too can find a clash between their political role and father role...with all the hours demanded of the role.
In my question time I pointed out that their was an irony in that over the River at St Thomas's Hospital we have consultants, surgeons, midwives, nurses in all specialist roles having to juggle the demands of being a mother and clinician with long hours of work. But I was wondering if now we have zoom and electronic voting does this now make it easier to operate though all are effective MPs no matter the challenges.
I was thinking it would have been good if Ursula von der Leyden the President of the EU commission could have joined in the discussion. She is a mother of 7 and took in a Syrian refugee. She has had a long political career in the German parliament before her present role.
We are amazing as women we have such a talent for multi tasking.
ref: Fabian Women's Network plus I am going to put in the link to Fawcett Society to remind us all of the right to vote women fought for.
