The Conservatives continue to treat women and equalities portfolio as an inconvenience rather than a priority. 

Published 30 April 2018

After Amber Rudd's resignation in light of the Windrush scandal, Sajid Javid has been appointed new Home Secretary, while Penny Mordaunt has taken on the women and equalities brief. 

A Women's Equality Party spokesperson said: 

“Penny Mordaunt is now the fourth person to hold the job of Women and Equalities Secretary in less than two years.

“The women and equalities brief has repeatedly been treated as of secondary importance by the Conservatives, passed around like an inconvenient add-on rather than being treated with the seriousness that it deserves and needs.

“We hope that Penny Mordaunt will take the opportunity to drive the desperately-needed reforms to tackle inequality both domestically – for example, by working with the new Home Secretary to take on the epidemic of violence against women and girls – and internationally, by making sure funding reaches grassroots women’s organisations who have the skills and trust so that we can end FGM within a generation.

"The appointment of the first BAME person to one of the great offices of state is a huge milestone in the fight for equality. But the fact that Cabinet now contains even fewer women is a stark reminder of just how fleeting progress can be.

"Four months after Theresa May said she was going to put women at the centre of her Cabinet, she finds herself surrounded by men who want to get rid of her."