Jess Phillips slams UK’s reliance on women’s charity as ‘sexist’

PoliticsOpinion
3 Aug 2025 • 5:30 PM MYT
The Independent
The Independent

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  • Minister for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls Jess Phillips has said that the UK has grown "fat" on the unpaid labour of women, deeming it "fundamentally sexist".
  • She argued that the nation's dependence on women's charitable contributions for decades has led to a reluctance from the government to provide these services itself.
  • Ms Phillips expressed her disdain for her job title, suggesting that safeguarding against gender-based violence should be a mainstream responsibility across all government departments, not just the Home Office.
  • She said that women historically set up vital services like refuges and counselling for free, filling gaps where government provision was absent.
  • Ms Phillips said that undoing this reliance on free female labour and elevating the issue to a mainstream concern will be a difficult and lengthy process.

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