AIBU to question criticism of a female MP’s outfit in maiden speech?

[Browningpers]

Spectator article asking whether Hannah Spencer’s outfit detracted from her maiden speech. Seen similar elsewhere too.

I can’t ever recall the same being asked of a male politician.

Article by a woman too.

AIBU?

I preferred the trouser suit she wore when she was sworn in but I always cheer when I see female politicians break away from the badly fitting boxy suit uniform, whether it’s Hannah Spencer, Angela Rayner or Theresa May. I think it can be a sign of a streak of independence plus to be frank, I love clothes and I’m shallow. In case you’re about to ask, yes I’d like to see more of their male colleagues do it too. I very much Hannah will be bothered by an article in The Spevtator, probably the reverse.

Green at the bottom, trans flag colours on top. The perfect metaphor for her party’s priorities. 🙄

Tip: if you have to claim an insult was the work of your 'teenage nephew', and add two emoji so we know its 'funny', you probably need to accept that witty put downs are not your strength.

I agree.

It may not have been your choice of outfit, but it covered all her body apart from head and hands, wasn’t tight, didn’t highlight breasts or bottom and looked very comfortable.

There was Michael Foot in his donkey jacket.

Which wasn't actually a donkey jacket at all, but a three-quarter length Loden coat.

Posted about a woman on a site for women. Grim is the right word.

It's branding. She's going to be 'The MP in rainbow colours'. Like Margaret Thatcher's suits and pussycat bow blouses, Teresa May's leopard print shoes, it's all about creating an instant association and continually raising her profile - it, along with fluffy, baby blonde hair also emphasises her youth and telegraphs a 'sweet' (I don't actually mean just like a packet of Opal Fruits) and not ambitious/cynical/self serving persona.

I doubt that she's in any way fluffy and sweet. She's a professional politician. But it's handy to get people thinking that.

Yeah I'm going to take a punt that Hannah Spencer was perfectly aware her outfits would attract attention. That's not a criticism - she clearly enjoys her clothes and, while not being a fan of her party, I like her for that, but you can also use clothes to send a message and I agree with @NeverDropYourMooncup that's the intention here: 'You can see I'm not like all the other politicians' / 'I may be at Westminster now but I'm still me' etc etc

What I think would be unacceptable would be pouring over the outfits worn by female MPs who prefer to choose to dress in an anonymous way.

Internalised misogyny

I agree it wasn’t revealing. But it was awful.

I just don’t get the issue to be honest and don’t see this as misogyny or sexism, she looks a bloody fright, it is totally inappropriate for the House of Commons and her job, just as it would be really inappropriate for mine. And many other business environments, And if a bloke turned up at the House of Commons in a male similar get up he’d also be talked about, let’s not all pretend thays not the case so we can fake scream misogyny,

there is a business dress code etiquette, our clothes should not scream look at me, the focus should be on the words and the person. They should look professional and business like.

but she’s a green and looking at their mad policies I doubt anything other a
than a ridiculous outfit could be expected.

this isn’t sexist, it’s not about misogyny it’s about a person turning up inappropriate clothing for the work environment thei are in and if a man did similar he’d get the same comments.

There's a dress code for parliament and she looked like a clown. She always reminds me of a 12 year old in a 90s American sitcom. Not every criticism of a woman is misogyny and what she wears is no beyond reproach. I expect professional clothes in parliament, anything else is disrespectful to the serious role MPs have.

I remember articles dissecting outfits worn by Theresa May, Angela Raynor and now Hannah Spencer. Cannot recollect any articles about what a male mp wears

I’m genuinely interested in what you consider inappropriate about the outfit? It’s tailored and not revealing so I assume the colour? Who decides what colours are ‘business appropriate’?

ETA: there are no specific rules on colours, and the Speaker clearly did not consider her outfit to be inappropriate https://www.parliament.uk/contentassets/33b6064aa92f4ee883c8876a5c36687e/hoc_2023_rules_of_behaviour_and_courtesies-nov-2023.pdf

Parliament does have a dress code of business wear. She is welcome to flout the dress code but she can't be surprised if it gets commented on.

Male MPs have previously been criticised for wearing bright colours in the Chamber by other MPs and had articles about it in more mainstream press such as the BBC, so I don’t think it’s just because she’s a woman. I think she should be able to wear whatever as long as it meets the rules of Parliament.

If the Speaker considers the a Member is dressed inappropriately they can refuse to let them speak. Clearly that wasn’t the case here. https://www.parliament.uk/contentassets/33b6064aa92f4ee883c8876a5c36687e/hoc_2023_rules_of_behaviour_and_courtesies-nov-2023.pdf

I went to have a look and thought it was a nod to IWD, slightly off beat suffragette colours. Other women in the Commons were wearing green and purple.

I was impressed by her speech, she’s not a brilliant or slick orator but came across as real and immensely proud of where she’s from and of her community. I think she’ll represent her constituents unlike many MPs who won seats never to be seen in their constituency again. She talked about many of the local businesses, recommending where to get the best hash brown sandwich! It felt personal, human and someone who wanted to lift people up not tear them down. Part of her speech below:

"To the women in my life who've had my back, who've fought for equality alongside me, and to the men that I work with, especially the lads on my plastering course who dealt with my newfound spotlight in the middle of our training very well.
But those men who will suffer the effects of this unequal society through their mental health. To the veterans I know who were willing to risk everything and come home and find that society was turning its back on them.
To the white working classes who are always lumped into one group and never appreciated. To everyone who will have nowhere to sleep tonight or will barely exist in a cold, damp and insecure home.
To my trans siblings who get blamed for everything. To the Muslims everywhere who are constantly and often violently scapegoated. To the disabled people who can't access the world because of structural inequality that is completely fixable.
To the people of colour who have to work harder at everything. I don't always get it. I won't say I always understand it. But what I do know is what it feels like to be looked down on. To be let down and left behind. To be less worthy because of something about me. And our struggles may be different, but our humanity is the same. We always stick together. We always fight for each other."

My only criticism would be she could have acknowledged the anti semitism that many Jewish people are experiencing in this country right now as well. But I feel criticism of how she looks is unwarranted and sexist and no, I don’t think her outfit detracted from her words.

Two things can be true at once. It's a shame a woman's outfit is being picked up on where a man's wouldn't. But its also a shame she didn't dress appropriately for what should be a very serious role representing all her constituents no matter if they didn't vote for her. We have got the Parliament we deserve which now contain people that aren't dressed in a serious manner but dress to stand out and get attention by the bright colours. I don't think Parliament is the place to showcase your own style. It's the place to show how you can advocate for people using your words.

I don't think her clothes are inappropriate. Distinctive and pushing boundaries? Yes. Attention seeking? Arguably. But I think that's the point.

But we women have always argued that we should be treated equally to men and not rely on our looks or appearance to get ahead or get attention.

I was surprised by the Spectator article though.

I genuinely don't understand why posters are pretending a male MP wouldn't be criticised for the way he dresses. It's like Boris Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn completely passed them by. Even if the rtft they'd see it. But the clown who dressed in the dark gets a free pass because she's a woman 🙃

This is honestly one of the most depressing threads I’ve ever read here. People calling some colourful fabric ‘inappropriate’ because it’s not their choice, and ignoring the more salient point which was her speech (which was all about the ways people are divided on spurious grounds). Every single MP who has been slung out for inappropriate behaviour of one or another kind has been dressed ‘in business attire’ while doing so. Honestly we get the politics we deserve, which is mostly venal shitbags and liars. But at least they’re all in dark coloured suits eh?