I spoke too soon...

Just a few short weeks ago, on International Women’s Day, I lambasted the UK Government for its lack of commitment to promoting women’s rights in its foreign policy. I referred to Action Aid’s excellent campaign for the establishment of a Ministerial role to co-ordinate the work of the Foreign Office, Department for International Development and Ministry of Defence to tackle violence against women overseas. Referring to a Parliamentary answer to Jo Swinson MP in which the Prime Minister gave an indifferent response to the suggestion, I stated that the Government had no plans to create such a role.

Naturally, shortly after the piece was published on The F Word, the Prime Minister announced a new role for Foreign Office Minister Baroness Kinnock. Obviously I coughed and spluttered a little. I wondered how I had got it so wrong. Clearly the PM declined to reveal his plans in response to a Parliamentary question, preferring to save the announcement for International Women’s Day (somewhat calling into question the point of Parliamentary questions, but that is another matter). I even considered eating my words.

However, I won’t be eating my words, at least until a few more questions have been answered. So close to a General Election, I couldn’t help but wonder whether the Government had announced this new role in the knowledge that Baroness Kinnock was highly unlikely to be a Minister (or indeed, Gordon Brown unlikely to be Prime Minister) in a few weeks’ time, making it a somewhat meaningless appointment. On top of that, most Government departments, including the Foreign Office, are facing significant budget cuts, and it seems highly unlikely that the Government will announce additional funding for this work at this stage, let alone create civil service posts to support Baroness Kinnock’s work. In which case, the move would be purely cosmetic.

The other big question is, if the Conservative Party should happen to win the General Election, would they continue this post or abolish it? I used the opportunity of a Women’s Question Time hustings event in Westminster to question all the main political parties on whether they support the continuation of this role. The always-articulate Caroline Lucas MEP offered the Green Party’s support, and Liberal Democrat Women and Equalities Spokesperson Lynne Featherstone MP said her party would also support the role. Of course Vera Baird QC, speaking for the Labour Party, offered her support, but the party I really wanted to hear from was the Conservatives. Theresa May MP first insisted that this was an Ambassadorial Role, not a Ministerial Role (quite whether this is true and what are the implications, I don’t yet know). She then explained that she was in discussions with her party about this question, but that she did not yet know whether the Conservatives would keep the role alive. A Parliamentary motion calling on all parties to commit to keeping the role has, at the time of writing, been signed by 13 MPs, including 1 Conservative, but the party has not yet announced its official line on the issue.

So, the first major question is whether or not there will still be a Minister co-ordinating this work after 6^th May. The second is whether it will have adequate resources and support to make a difference. To her credit, Theresa May also said that there is a difference between creating an Ambassadorial role and creating real change on the ground – which is absolutely true. We have yet to find out whether this role is purely symbolic, or if it will have real clout. Until then, my words will remain uneaten. In the meantime, congratulations to Action Aid and the Gender and Development Network on their campaign success.