Minister imitates Harry Enfield to accuse 'sexist' Labour

A Treasury minister imitated Harry Enfield as she accused Labour of "latent sexism" for suggesting fuel tax cuts and other policies do not help women.

Economic Secretary Harriet Baldwin recalled the comedian's "Women: Know Your Limits!" sketches as she claimed the Opposition was expressing views consistent with the 1930s during a debate on women and the economy.

She claimed a motion tabled by the Opposition for debate at best "shows unconscious bias" but at worst demonstrates "a latent sexism from a sexist Labour leadership".

Labour's motion noted proposals for infrastructure spending in the Autumn Statement are "predominantly focused" in sectors that "typically employ more men than women" and raised concerns that Government policies have a "disproportionate impact" on women.

During the debate, Equalities Minister Caroline Dinenage claimed Labour made "bizarre and outdated assumptions" about how households divide their money and also implied "lower fuel prices somehow do not help women".

She told MPs: "The pink battle bus may have run on something other than petrol, but the rest of us fill up in the normal way."

Shadow minister for women and equalities Kate Green hit back by suggesting Ms Dinenage had also made assertions, insisting: "It is true that women manage the household budget in many households, but increasingly, it is not their income to manage.

"With the married couple's tax break, more money is being put into the wallets of men, and women are dependent on men to fund them.

"Moreover - this point relates to what she said about fuel - the number of women who own and drive cars is significantly lower than the number of men.

"That is why it matters that benefits and tax policies should address what actually happens and the way in which families live their lives."

While closing the debate, Ms Baldwin returned to the issue and told MPs: "In their motion they assume mixed-gender households don't share incomes. It's quite an assumption on their part.

"They assume that spending less on public services invariably leads to poorer services, something that we've comprehensively disproved over the last five years.

"And they even imply that the billions and billions of pounds of tax cuts that have led to lower petrol prices at the pump don't help women.

"I mean, I've heard before that Labour want to take us back to the 1970s but actually this is more like the Harry Enfield sketch about the 1930s and I'm going to try and imitate him: "Women, know your limits and for pity's sake don't drive.'

"I mean, the motion at best shows unconscious bias but at worst I'd say it shows a latent sexism from a sexist Labour leadership.

"It says in the motion don't invest in infrastructure because it's not women who build things. Where do I start with that?"

Ms Green intervened: "Of course women drive cars, of course in many households income is shared but as we know when income is in the hands of women they make different choices in the interests of their families and their children.

"You must recognise that - that is asserted by the United Nations, it's understood by the social policy research going back many decades and I wish you would acknowledge it."

Labour's motion was defeated by 290 votes to 243, majority 47.