Emma Confronts the Prime Minister

Lib Dem councillor and Chair of Islington's Early Years Partnership Emma Gowers yesterday challenged the Prime Minister to take real action to improve childcare provision.

When Emma originally booked a place at a major childcare conference yesterday, she expected to spend the day discussing what Britain could learn from experts from other countries about how they run childcare.

But with the national television and newspapers dominated all day by announcements from Labour and the Conservatives about their childcare policies, she found that the 'senior government minister' listed on the programme was in fact the Prime Minister making a keynote announcement of the future of government policy.

But the Prime Minister hadn't reckoned on bumping into someone who knew far more about childcare than he did.

After the Prime Minister's speech, in front of hundreds of delegates from across the country, Emma stood up to ask him why the Government was not taking action to make childcare more affordable in London. The high costs of housing and of childcare in London puts it out of the reach of many working parents.

The policy of the Liberal Democrats - agreed by the Liberal Democrat party conference earlier this year, following a speech from Emma proposing it - is to change the system of tax breaks, so that all working parents can benefit from it, not just some.

The current complex rules discriminate against middle-earners or those who are self-employed - exactly the people the Government says it wants to help.

Emma's question was greeted with cheers from hundreds of other childcare experts, also attending the one-day conference.

In a further twist, the Prime Minister had some help in answering Emma's question from Margaret Hodge, the Minister for Children, and one of the residents in Barnsbury ward who Councillor Emma Gowers represents on the Council. Mrs Hodge lives in the same street as Mr Blair in the ward Emma was elected to represent in a high profile by election last year. Mrs Hodge - herself a former Leader of Islington Council - was sitting next to Mr Blair on the Prime Minister on the platform, and was seen by hundreds of delegates to whisper in the Prime Minister's ear as soon as Emma stood up!

Councillor Emma Gowers said:

"Meeting the Prime Minister was certainly a surprise - but I was determined to use the opportunity to explain how the Liberal Democrat approach to improving childcare is much better than the Government's failed attempts.

"Nothing is more important than giving children the best possible start in life - and providing parents who want it with good quality childcare options.

"Unfortunately the Government has failed badly to make childcare affordable for many working parents in London.

"Fortunately in Islington we are make great progress - with hundreds of new childcare places created over just the last few years - in a range of Council-run, voluntary sector, and private settings.

"It was very disappointing to see the Prime Minister treating this vitally important area - about which he clearly knew little - so badly. I had to get up and explain that there is a better way."

Thursday's conference was the second time that Emma has run into the Blair family at high profile media events. Two years ago Emma was representing Islington at a London early years awards ceremony when Cherie Blair took over the event to make her dramatic announcement over the Carole Caplin Bristol flats affair.

Emma added:

"It's funny to think that last night the Prime Minister was having dinner with George Bush in Washington - but he had to deal with me first!"

The Facts

Councillor Emma Gowers is one of the three Liberal Democrat councillors for Barnsbury ward. She was elected in a byelection on 26 June 2003.In 2002 she was elected the Chair of Islington's Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership (EYDCP), the key body in increasing the amount of affordable childcare in Islington. Emma is also Principal of The Gower School in North Road.In 2002-4 Emma was a leading member of the working group drafting the Liberal Democrats' national Early Years policy, Fair Foundations.At Liberal Democrat conference in Southport in March 2004 she moved a successful amendment calling for all childcare costs to be made tax-deductible. At present some employees are able to claim support through the tax system for childcare costs, but many - including those working for large businesses or who are self-employed - are not. Emma successfully argued that this approach was unfair, and that making all childcare costs tax deductible would help many mothers and fathers to go back to work.