By Seema Malhotra
The attacks on Harriet Harman at Business Questions were the most vicious and sexist I have heard for a long time. She was right to not dignify their questions with an answer.
It is beyond me why valuable time in Parliament, at a time of recession and a need for hope and confidence in our country, that the Tory frontbench finds it is more productive to talk about the shoes that women MPs are wearing.
If the Tories want to talk about their record on women in political life, then yes, let’s have that debate.
They talk about having had the first woman Prime Minister. So what was her record?
At which point did Margaret Thatcher have six or more women in her Cabinet, which we have seen almost consistently under both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown? At which point, under and since Margaret Thatcher, did the Tories have the majority of women in the House of Commons? Currently women make up more than 50% of the population, but 19.4% of MPs. After the 2005 election, the Tories had 17 women MPs, and the Labour Party had 98. Even the Liberal Democrats are hot on their tails with 10 women MPs.
So maybe we should take a look at local councillors. At 2008, we had 30.8% of women councillors. 0.8% of councillors (149) are ethnic minority women. Of these 149 heroines of our nation, 20% are in the Tory councillors, and 64% are Labour councillors.
Perhaps we should move to the positive action measures the Tories have in place. The A list? Say no more.
No, yesterday was truly the day that Cameron’s Conservatives showed themselves to be what they really are – and how stuck in the past they are. And the point is that individual Tory women MPs may want to see things change, but they will never have the critical mass of numbers of women at the top in the Tory Party that research shows any organisation, public or private, needs in order to turn things around and shake up the deeper cultural issues that hold back progress.
The demonstration of the Tories at Business Questions of the kind of Yah Boo politics that turns women off politics. Their performance was about playing to their schoolboy chums on the back benches, not about playing a public role in the nation’s political life.
Politics should be about principles and about debate. Not a debate about women’s attire that would be more appropriate for the sort of debate Parliament might have expected 200 years ago. If there is such disrespect for women politicians on the side of the Tories, how can women ever expect that they will be defenders of their needs and rights in Parliament.
Yesterday was truly the day that the Tories said goodbye to women’s votes. Every woman (and principled man) should listen to the debate and spread the word
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Thirty years ago the Tories elected Thatcher because she was the best option and not because of her gender.
If you can't take a bit of banter then you have a long way to go.
Your profile make a point that you were the 'first Asian women to chair the Fabian Society'.
Can I ask what importance you attach to this?
Was it that the Fabian Society had been racist, and this event demonstrated that it was no longer the case?
Or was it that, as a self-labeled asian you believe you brought something to the role that a non-asian could not?
If the latter, and you believe asians bring something to the role that non-asians cannot, do you also believe that non-asians can bring something to roles, that asians cannot?
I would much appreciate it, if you would spell out these racial elements that you clearly think differntiate asians and non-asians in their work roles.
I am surprised you have such a view, as this is not something that I would have thought the Labour party would be very comfortable with (at least not in public).
It is a cliche that anyone brings their own experience, including ethnicity, to any situation. If you want an example of how an Asian might contribute something that a non Asian might not, I'll give you one.
In a consultation exercise in my part of the world, a predominantly Asian area was leafleted with materials in Asian languages. This seems like a perfectly fair piece of outreach to me. However, it had not occured to the consultation team that many Asian people can speak an Asian language without being able to read it. I don't think this would be as likely to occur to a European because if you speak (say) French, you can normally read it as well.
I am sure there are lots of other examples of people having insights from their own experience.
But in any case, its really not racist to mention facts about yourself.
Really? Having read Hansard I can see that Douglas Hogg was rude, although Ms Harman's ambitions are ludicrous (not because of her sex but because she is patently not up to it), but otherwise it was all pretty mild stuff. And Douglas Hogg is no longer on the Tory front bench.
Alan Duncan, who is on the Tory front bench, has adopted a teasing style as shadow leader. It has been rather effective in deflating his opposite number.
As for the headline of this post, I doubt whether one woman voter in 100,000 is even aware of what Mr Duncan said. Last time I checked, the Tories were doing rather better with women voters than they were with men voters.
I never believed in penis-envy, but now I have to wonder...
No it's not honest! It's those idiot males who rolled on their backs all obedient like, and let the dat moos loose. I wouldn't wate your time with penis envy, never forget we can sit down comfortably to let out our pee. They just become objects to have the pee taken out of them :-)
If these women really want to be taken seriously, then they should start up their own blog, and have their own daily input. That way they would at least, showsome independance..... On second thoughts maybe things shold stay the same, the the editor can shine in a aubservient way....
A great deal was done to further womens' rights in society. But the way both you and Harman and your ilk go on, it does nothing but make light of better women than you that went there first.
It seems to me that apart from going out and living in the real world: a good dose of having children, working, maintaining a good relationshop with a significant other, and generally coming to terms with being a great woman who multi-tasks, you wil nevr get why women are, in fact far superior to men. Us real women don't need to shout about it, we are more than comfortable in our own skins and owning the knowledge for ourselves!
You should have read Hansard or watched for yourself, the trouble with your rant was it was so uninformed. I suggest you know what you are talking about next time...
http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/cm200809/cmhansrd/cm090312/debtext/90312-0004.htm#09031256000006
As you can see the comment was about Harman's self publicity with reference to her leadership ambitions. She was the one that mentioned shoes in her dealings with the press. And while you refer to the "tory front bench" you fail to mention that the man on record as bringing this up is Alan Duncan, the one member of that bench we can be sure is not objectifying Harman as a sex object.
May I suggest you write more? I would suggest your interventions will do more to convince ordinary women to vote for people who will not treat them with contempt.
Just a thought Derek.
What a load of drivel. You're one of the "professionally aggrieved", aren't you? You may well believe all the tosh you write, but not every single women agrees with your fatuous viewpoint.
Get a life.
It's at times like this that we wonder whether the Pope™ (brought to you by Whirlpool, emancipators of the distaff side since 1906) may actually have a point.
Alan Duncan spent his time asking Harriet Harman about:
why the government was so slow in allowing the House to debate the economy in government time
whether the regional Select Committees were a good idea
legislation around rights to protest
the accountability of DCLG to Parliament
the Welfare Reform Bill
Harriet Harman's leadership ambitions
The Leader of the House was given as much respect as any other politician in the House.
Reading your CV I'm struck with the thought that maybe you've been involved in 'politics' for too much of your young life. Have you ever considered getting a real job in the real world?
Other than that can I just point out how many MEN have been replying to this post with quite aggressive language, if I weren't concerned by the backlash I might even suggest that the response is just a thinly veiled continuation of the Harman hating show.
"...suck the sweet thats offered"? - This sums up Blair's relationship with Bush to a tee.
Its becoming a bit like the Vagina Monologues without the fun.