Nats again exploit PM's lack of children

The National Party launched a fresh assault on Helen Clark's childlessness yesterday, using John Tamihere's criticisms to justify it.

In his Investigate magazine interview, Mr Tamihere implied that members of the Labour Party who did not have children could not relate to many families and the strains placed on them.

He did not refer specifically to Helen Clark, but the comments would have provoked sensitivity as she has been particularly angered by National's attacks on the fact that she doesn't have children.

Mr Tamihere said in the article: "So they just go and have a parlez-vous Francais somewhere and a latte, whereas we don't get to plot.

"We're just trying to get our kids to synchronise their left and right feet. They don't even have to think about that."

Yesterday, National's families spokeswoman, mother-of-one Judith Collins, sent out a press release saying she was unable to attend the Government's launch of a Families Commission survey at the Otara Market today because she was "too busy being a parent".

Ms Collins said it was a pity the Government had chosen to launch the programme on the day parents were busiest with family responsibilities such as children's Saturday sport, as it showed "how out of touch Helen Clark and Labour are".

Helen Clark said through a spokesman that Judith Collins' comment was more of the "pointless negativism that was making National unelectable".

"If Judith Collins ever bothered to get down to the markets on a Saturday morning she would see that an enormous number of people go there with their families."

Mr Tamihere had been expected to be with the Prime Minister at today's launch as a public bridge-building exercise before he returns to Parliament next week.

But last night he was unsure if he would be going, saying he was juggling other party commitments.

National's education spokesman, Bill English, also used Mr Tamihere's comments to show that Labour had no idea about the realities of having a family.

He said parents with youngsters in early childhood care were being told by the Government to drop their children off "on the hour" so a new staff recording system would work.

"This confirms John Tamihere's view that the Labour Government is run by people who have no idea of the real work done by families."

In 2002, Helen Clark said she had faith that most Kiwis would say people were entitled to make choices about their lives.