Sexism in the Labour Party?

By A. Supporter

I don’t understand what constitutes sexism anymore. Take Caroline Flint, ex Minister for Europe. Many have concluded, on the back of Ms Flint’s revelations, that Gordon Brown is a sexist man, that women in his Cabinet are treated as little more than “window dressing”.

Well, says who? For the time being, just Caroline Flint it seems. That said, Ms Flint has made it absolutely clear that her decision to leave the Government was down to the fact that she was not promoted in the latest Cabinet reshuffle – that explains why she proffered her fullest support of the Prime Minister on the day of the reshuffle and withdrew her support the very next day, after she was told that she had not been promoted. For if things were so terrible, if indeed Ms Flint was ignored by the Prime Minister, treated as “window dressing”, then why on earth did she not speak out sooner? It’s no good being principled after the fact.

I don’t disagree that sexism exists and that it should be tackled wherever it rears its ugly head but in the case of Caroline Flint, the term “sexist” has been used to describe and discredit the Prime Minister for not giving her the job she wanted. Yes, there are more men in the Cabinet than women but does that make Gordon Brown a sexist? Similarly, can we accurately claim that Sir Alex Ferguson is a racist because there are more white players in the Manchester United squad than black? I would like to think that we live in a fairer society than that, a society in which Caroline Flint didn’t get promotion because she wasn’t very good (or because, unlike Yvette Cooper, she is an arch-Blairite who has privately poured scorn on the Prime Minister) and not because she is a woman.

Personally, I don’t care if Caroline Flint is attractive or not. The Cabinet Office is not Big Brother 10; it’s a serious place from which both men and women govern the country. If Caroline Flint believes that her looks have hindered her success in some way then I’ll say this: Caroline, you are not Helen of Troy, your looks are not a poison chalice, nor are your looks relevant to your performance as a Minister.

In reference to her resignation, I would have preferred it if she had said something like: “Gordon doesn’t want me in the Cabinet because Hazel, my best mate, has just resigned (because she doesn’t really like Gordon all that much) and consequently, Gordon thinks I might feel the same way.” That explanation, though unlikely, would have summed up what we now know.

In any case, Caroline Flint’s accusation does raise an interesting question: is there sexism in the Labour Party?

I don’t believe there is. Personally, I’m proud that our Deputy Leader is a woman, that Labour was the first party to introduce all-women shortlists (even if it did negate meritocracy and break the law under the Sex Discrimination Act), and that when Labour came to power in 1997 there were 101 elected Labour women MPs compared to the 14 Conservative women MPs. In short, I believe the Labour Party is, for the most part, a self-consciously fair party that celebrates equality and diversity.

While there are, sadly, always going to be cases of discrimination in society, whether because of gender, ethnicity, or disability, I don’t believe that Caroline Flint is the victim of sexism but rather the victim of a civil war within the Labour Party that has raged for far too long.