In her commentary, Begum Zorlu, PhD researcher at City, University of London, reflects on the gender policies of the candidates contesting to become the next prime minister of the United Kingdom.
News outlets in Britain were talking about two major headlines last week: the record breaking heatwaves bringing the county to a standstill and the contest to elect the next leader of the Conservative party.
The path to the contest was built on multiple scandals and set off when multiple high-ranking resignations pushed a reluctant Boris Johnson to resign. Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak became the final candidates after multiple rounds of voting. Both of the candidates had played a key role in Johnson‘s administration and supported the prime minister through his multiple scandals ranging from lockdown parties to allegations of nepotism.
The fact that there were multiple women running for the contest raised the hopes that there would be a shift towards increasing women’s issues under the new leadership. There were multiple women and especially women from ethnic minority groups who ran to become the next prime minister. Some members and supporters of the Conservative government advocated this fact as demonstrating the inclusivity of the party. However, none of the candidates promoted an agenda that would enhance the women’s agenda and promote inclusion of communities and groups facing threats, repression and racism. This is primarily due to the Conservative Party’s stance on the social movements/issues like Black Lives Matter, trans rights and the pro-austerity agenda that has put enormous burden on those relying on benefits in an environment where there is a cost of living crisis.
In the race, Kemi Badenoch, a Londoner born to Nigerian parents was eliminated a couple of days ago. She was known for her promotion of a right wing agenda which questions the concept of white privilege and trans rights. She has made multiple controversial statements on climate change along with statements that aimed to legitimise colonialism. Suella Braverman, also a Londoner, was born to a family of Indian origin, who emigrated to Britain in the 1960s. She is also considered on the right of the party and supported the notorious migration deal that seeks to transfer asylum seekers in Britain to Rwanda. As a Johnson loyalist, she has used a dangerous rhetoric towards asylum seekers as when a court ruled against asylum seekers being sent to Rwanda, she stated: “it is time to complete Brexit and let the British people decide who can and cannot stay in our country.”
Penny Mordaunt who has been around Westminster for almost twenty years became the third and was recently eliminated from the race. Three years ago she became the Secretary of State for Defence, becoming the first woman to hold the post. Mordaunt’s political journey has incorporated taking part in global conservative networks as in the case of working for George W. Bush’s 2004 presidential campaign. She pursued a militarist tone throughout the years and voted against investigations into the Iraq war.
Lastly Liz Truss, who started her political journey with the Liberal Democrats will be contesting Rishi Sunak to become the next prime minister. For some she is considered “the Boris candidate” like Braverman who is also supporting her campaign. She has spent at least ten years in Westminster and became the Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor, the first woman to hold either position. Last year she was promoted to the position of Foreign Secretary. She has faced a lot of criticisms due to her stances on international affairs. On a TV programme a couple of months ago she stated that she supported anyone volunteering to travel to Ukraine to help in its defence against Russia, which is illegal in the UK and was criticised as the statement could lead to further escalation and aggression. One of the other controversial scandals was the breach of UK law in the case of sending weapons to Saudi Arabia. Truss also on multiple occasions attacked what has been termed post-modernism. She has infamously stated “while we were taught about racism and sexism, there was too little time spent making sure everyone could read and write.”
Overall, all of the candidates portrayed an agenda that targeted the trans community so overwhelmingly that the CNN named the process as: “Britain’s Conservative party leadership race is turning into a transphobic spectacle.” As the CNN reports along with the women candidates, according to the allies of Sunak, the MP will oppose trans women competing in women’s sport and “will call on schools to be more careful in how they teach on issues of sex and gender.” Furthermore, none of the candidates do not present a strong voice on gender parity and their voting record shows a worrying trend. As the British website How They Work for You, which tracks the voting behaviour of MPs demonstrate, all of the women candidates consistently voted against measures to prevent climate change and for a stricter asylum system. Consequently, the leadership change does not provide those who support gender equality and LGBTQ rights, but in contrast provides a sorely trend.