The former MP has been a vocal advocate for women and girls during her 42-year Parliamentary career
The Foreign Secretary has appointed Harriet Harman, the Labour peer and former deputy leader of the Labour Party, in a new role to help champion female equality worldwide and deliver global economic growth.
Baroness Harman, the MP for Peckham from October 1982 until she stood down in May 2024, was Parliament’s longest-serving female MP and was declared “Mother of the House” by Theresa May. She has been a vocal advocate for women and girls, including on issues such as political representation, maternity rights, and tackling violence.
Foreign Secretary David Lammy highlighted that the role, announced on International Women’s Day, was a practical one rather than a nominal one. “Accelerating action on equality for women and girls is vital to delivering the global economic growth we need and a safer, more secure world,” he said.
“Harriet has spent her career championing women’s rights and gender equality. Her record of achievement and personal commitment make her a formidable advocate for the rights and empowerment of women and girls around the world.”
Baroness Chapman, the minister for international development, said that Harman was a “legend” and “inspiration” of women’s rights and looked forward to working with her to create more opportunities for women.
Harman held many senior positions in Parliament beginning in 1997, when Tony Blair appointed her secretary for social services and the UK’s first minister for women. Newspapers did not take kindly to Harman’s feminism throughout her career. The Daily Mail coined the nickname “Harriet Harperson” for her stance on gender equality.
Rumours were also spread claiming falsely that Harman’s three children had taken her surname rather than that of her husband, the late trade unionist Jack Dromey, himself a former MP. When, in 2012, the Evening Standard described Harman as “the most ardent feminist of her generation”, it was not meant kindly.
Harman now appears as a regular guest on the Sky News political editor Beth Rigby’s podcast, Electoral Dysfunction. Harman replaced Jess Phillips last year following Phillips’s appointment to the Home Office with the brief for safeguarding and violence against women and girls. With two such doughty alumnae, it will be interesting to see who Rigby chooses to replace Harman should she be unable to remain on the show.
Harman said the appointment as special envoy was a “great honour” and she looked forward to “driving this important work”.
“We have made tremendous strides towards ending women’s inequality but the job is far from done,” she said. “Women and girls are still not equal, and many still face oppression, violence and discrimination.”
She added: “The UK will, in coalition with women around the world, play a key role in standing up for the rights of all women and girls at a critical time.”