Even Stakhanovites wilt under the strain
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Your support makes all the difference.Alan Milburn is not the first minister to complain of the tension between high office and family life.
Long hours in the Commons and an evening spent with paperwork - not to mention the daily grind of ministerial visits, speeches and briefings - mean that few members of the Government have enough time to spend with their loved ones. And their weekends are constantly infringed upon by their constituency duties.
Mr Milburn's schedule as Secretary of State was said by aides to be "punishing", with an early start in the office and a schedule planned to the minute with endless meetings, briefings and visits to hospitals throughout the country.
A chauffeur-driven car picks up the typical minister from home by 7am or 8am. Most begin their day with breakfast meetings, followed by briefings with civil servants, special advisers, outside experts and fellow ministers.
As well as their responsibilities in the Commons - making statements and answering questions - and their departments, ministers' diaries are always packed with visits to schools, hospitals and factories, often miles away from London.
An important announcement or a damaging press story may lead to further meetings with spin doctors and press officers. Some admit they find the prospect of being cross-questioned by the Opposition "terrifying" and spend hours rehearsing answers.
At 8pm Mr Milburn is said to have escaped from the office to eat, but his evenings were often filled with official dinners. Even then his day would not be over. At the flat he shares with John Hutton, his deputy at the Department of Health, he would spend further hours working.
Many ministers, including Jack Straw, try to find time for an hour in the gym to help them meet the demands of a gruelling schedule. Gordon Brown is a famous workaholic, although his aides say he does fit exercise into his routine.
Many ministers speak of "juggling" their ministerial responsibilities with child care. In private they worry that they are pursuing political careers at the expense of their children.
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