David Cameron was accused of “failing women” yesterday after he stood up at prime minister’s questions surrounded entirely by men on his government’s front bench.
Labour leader Ed Miliband seized on the blunder and taunted the Conservative, accusing him of running the coalition Cabinet like an “old boys’ network”.
The row at Westminster erupted amid fresh concerns about the number of female Tory MPs, following the controversial de-selection of Anne McIntosh by members of the party’s Yorkshire constituency branch last week.
In the Commons, Mr Miliband said: “A picture tells a thousand words. Look at the all-male front bench ranged before us.
“The prime minister says that he wants to represent the whole country. I guess they did not let women into the Bullingdon Club either, so there we go.”
The Labour leader added: “He runs his government like the old boys’ network. That is why he is failing women across his party and across the country.”
Mr Cameron responded, saying 24% of the full Cabinet were women, but conceded: “That is not enough. I want to see that grow.” He also received loud cheers when he said the Conservatives were “proud” of having had the country’s first female prime minister, Margaret Thatcher.
On a social networking website, Labour Shadow Scottish Secretary Margaret Curran pointed to different figures, saying: “Not a single woman on the government’s front bench. Labour’s shadow cabinet is 44% women while only 15% of Cabinet attendees are women.”
Labour’s front bench had at least eight female MPs present during yesterday’s prime minister’s questions.
Asked where the Conservative Cabinet members had been during the session, a senior Downing Street source later said: “I’m not sure – presumably hard at work doing their jobs.”