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UK PM Cameron leaves 8-year-old daughter in pub

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NY Yankee

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By MEERA SELVA

The Associated Press

LONDON — It's every parent's nightmare: To get home from an event and realize that a child is missing. But it can turn out to be a political minefield as well if you also happen to be the prime minister.

British Prime Minister David Cameron's office confirmed Monday that he accidentally left his 8-year-old daughter Nancy in a country pub after a family Sunday lunch.

The incident sparked a debate in Britain about Cameron's parenting and comes only a few weeks after the government set up a program to give parents of young children classes in how to raise them. The incident also highlighted a sharp contrast with the United States, where it is nearly inconceivable that a similar mistake would have been made with one of President Barack Obama's daughters.

On the popular British parenting website Mumsnet, some people said the mistake was "easily done" while others wondered why the Camerons had not kept a closer watch on their young daughter.

Downing Street said the incident happened "a couple of months ago" as the family was leaving the pub near Chequers, the official country house prime ministers use while in office. Sunday pub lunches are a long traditional in Britain, often including roast beef, potatoes, Yorkshire pudding and salad along with red wine, beer or ale.

Nancy had gone to the bathroom while Cameron and the rest of the family piled into two cars to drive back to the house west of London.

Cameron was travelling in one car with his bodyguards and assumed that Nancy was in the other car with his wife Samantha and their two other children. Samantha assumed Nancy was with her father, and they only realized she was missing when they got home.

A spokeswoman for Cameron, who spoke on customary condition of anonymity in line with policy, said "the prime minister and Samantha were distraught when they realized Nancy wasn't with them. Thankfully when they phoned the pub she was there safe and well."

Nancy was separated from her parents for around 15 minutes until Cameron arrived to collect her from The Plough in the village of Cadsden, she added.

The spokeswoman declined to say whether Cameron's security detail had erred in their duties, insisting that Cameron and his wife took responsibility for the incident.

However, she said that security arrangements for the leader and his family are kept under review.

"They are their children and they take responsibility for them," she said. "No one is going to face disciplinary action. This was an error."

She explained that Cameron and his wife had visited the pub with a group of friends and their children for lunch.

"He had gone with friends at lunchtime, with a number of families with children, and they left in various different vehicles," she said. "The prime minister is a very busy man but he always tries to live as normal a life as possible with his family."

The incident was first reported in Rupert Murdoch's tabloid newspaper The Sun in the week that Cameron is due to give evidence at Britain's media ethics inquiry. Cameron himself set up the inquiry in the wake of revelations that reporters at another Murdoch tabloid, News of the World, had hacked into the voicemails of public figures, sports stars and even ordinary people in their search for scoops.

It comes a few weeks after a biography of Cameron by Francis Elliott and James Hanning described how he liked to relax by having "three or four glasses of wine" with his Sunday lunch.

__

Associated Press writer David Stringer contributed to this report.

http://www.ajc.com/news/nation-world/uk-pm-cameron-leaves-1455738.html

Every parent makes mistakes. I hope this doesn't become a big issue. There are more important things like the economy.
 
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SS4

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One bad decision does not make a bad parent. This time everything turned out ok and hopefully it'll serve as a warning to be more vigilant in future and hopefully wiped that smug smile off his face if only for a few minutes
 

185

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Stop bashing poor ol' David Cameron.

Anyway, it's Ivo's, Clagmonster's, Yorkie's and my fault. And everyone else's too.

Apparently were all in this together. ;)
 

Ivo

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Stop bashing poor ol' David Cameron.

Anyway, it's Ivo's, Clagmonster's, Yorkie's and my fault. And everyone else's too.

Apparently were all in this together. ;)

Oh yes. Everything is our fault. It's our fault that the banks were too reckless. It's our fault that people spend money they don't have. It's our fault that Spain's regions enjoy too much autonomy. It's our fault that Scotland didn't qualify for Euro 2012. It's our fault that the Jubilee line suffers signal failures. It's our fault that Mr Cameron and his family were temporarily separated from their of their own.

...wait, what? :lol:

(And yes, I know a large number of this forum aren't pro-Conservative, even though I am.)
 

Oswyntail

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Every parent has had one of those aaargh moments. What strikes me though, is that the security guards, who are there to guard the PM and his family didn't spot that the young lady was missing.
 

NIMBUS

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Every parent has had one of those aaargh moments. What strikes me though, is that the security guards, who are there to guard the PM and his family didn't spot that the young lady was missing.

Exactly. Like Princes William and Charles not being allowed to fly together for security reasons I suspect that Dave and Sam travel separately. A few weeks ago DC was on the Chiltern line en route to Chequers, with his youngest daughter, who he entertained for the entire journey whilst his security kept a low profile. He was the model of a devoted dad. Sam and the other kids presumably went by road.

Clearly his security made a major gaffe and there was a misunderstanding between the Camerons. No doubt the former will get a major dressing down but the media do seem to be trying to make a major issue out of nothing in particular for the sake of sales (either that or it's just a quiet news day).
 

Johnuk123

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Not quite as it seems.

The 2 parents left in seperate cars and both assumed the child was in the other one.
 

Temple Meads

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This is a story that a) isn't really anything to do with Cameron being PM and b) would be unremarkable if he wasn't.

Exactly.

I can think of many worse things Cameron has done.

Like choosing a career in politics :P
 

LE Greys

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I remember a few occasions where I did something similar to my parents, and they had to go and look for me. Still, Cameron is making some bad decisions currently, like not hanging Jeremy C. Hunt out to dry (making the PM look bad is a cardinal sin in government) and this is just another one.
 

12CSVT

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I'd imagine the newspapers would have reported it less sympatheticly if the parents had been unemployed council house tenants.
 

deltic1989

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It just shows that the Camerons are human. Maybe the little un wandered off youngsters of that age tend to do that; as parents we wish we had eyes in the back of our head but we dont and things like this sometimes happen. The main thing is that the little girl is unharmed and no worse for her extended stay in the local boozer.
 

Clip

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I'd imagine the newspapers would have reported it less sympatheticly if the parents had been unemployed council house tenants.

They wouldnt have reported it though if it was normal council house tenants. I dont remember my name being in the paper when me mam left me in town once(though we didnt live in a council house but its the same thing)

non story and has only served to show up those on the left at 'how can he run a country if he cant remember his kids' pathetic and opportunist statements made by people who obviously think they are perfect and the sun shines out their anus.
 

Oswyntail

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..... Still, Cameron is making some bad decisions currently, like not hanging Jeremy C. Hunt out to dry (making the PM look bad is a cardinal sin in government) and this is just another one.
I am sure he did not really decide to leave her there!
 

The 375 King

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None of us parents are perfect, we all make mistakes, we all get 'it' wrong sometimes, this time it was the turn of Mr&Mrs Cameron, next day it will be the turn of Mr&Mrs Someone-else, it is just how it goes .
 

LE Greys

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I am sure he did not really decide to leave her there!

Well, obviously not, but he made a mistake. I know it's only Human to err, but political leaders are supposed to be more than that. Besides, he seems to be making far bigger mistakes than that at present.
 
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