Senior Associate Solicitor at Irwin Mitchell Solicitors specialising in Medical Negligence and Patient Rights / APIL Senior Litigator / Legal 500 Key Lawyer 2022 / Content Creator
Politics aside, I have a big issue with this tweet For a start, Keir Starmer has in fact been misrepresented here and actually said he finishes at 6pm only on Friday evenings (and there are a few exceptions to this), to carve out protected time for his family. I don’t interpret this to mean that he won’t deal with urgent matters that arise at this time, just that non urgent work can wait. In any event, to describe a 6pm Friday finish as “part-time” is irresponsible, unfair, and out of touch. A healthy work life balance should be celebrated not belittled. In fact, in my view, the ability to set clear boundaries is an attribute of a good leader.
The thing I took out of this is that you are suggesting Keir Starmer is/would be a good leader. Hmmmmmmm!!!!
That is really true and as always you are awesome and you are always a legend as well
Hannah Lane
2w
Conservative twitter is run by 8 year olds it seems.
Maybe they're big fans of rocking up to work, sitting there for as long as possible and doing nothing? Because that would make a lot of sense actually...
Who came up with this campaign the Conservative intern, or the Labour Head of Marketing? Being committed to family time is probably Keir Starmer's (most) endearing quality. We should value leaders with the qualities we'd like to find in society, and being permanently on-call for work isn't something we should aspire to.
Doug Ward
2w
I agree, this is a stupid and puerile comment by conservative HQ. I also agree that non-urgent business can wait, however, in the case of the PM I expect that most non-urgent business is of the nature that it is likely delegated to someone else and a large majority of non-performative business the PM has to deal with is urgent. When accepting the position of Prime Minister it is my assumption (and I accept this might be incorrect) that you are agreeing to (for this period in your career) sacrificing other aspects of your life as you prioritise the duties of being Prime Minister. I personally struggle with the idea you can arbitrarily carve out a specific part of your calendar in such a position of responsibility - again, I have no idea what it is like to be PM so this is all assumption based (and possibly very anachronistic).
I applaud Keir Starmer for carving out this time for his family. It is vital to set boundaries in any high pressure job. His family will be there long after any job. I understand he is talking about Friday only and that there would be sensible exceptions to the rule - eg if there is a national emergency - and that he will be working many hours at other times. Surely non urgent matters can wait! I hope also this will mean his staff are likewise able to benefit from this and use Friday evenings as a time to relax and recharge.
Lee Gray 🟢
2w
When has finishing at 6pm being considered "part time"? this sounds Victorian mill workerish.
Group Actions Associate Solicitor at Irwin Mitchell
2wMy understanding is that Keir's wife is Jewish and they are having a Sabbath meal with their children.