- New poll reveals a challenge for Labour, with strong public support for bold UK action on global gender equality contrasting with low awareness of Government’s plan
- Consensus that women and girls’ rights are more under threat now than in recent years stretches across the political spectrum, particularly outside the mainstream parties
- CARE calls on Labour leadership gathering in Liverpool to meet public expectations for bolder support to the frontlines of the global rollback of women’s rights
The Government must act to reassure nearly half of UK women (47 per cent) and 4 in 10 UK adults (39 per cent) who say women and girl’s rights globally are more under threat now than five years ago.
A new poll by More in Common and CARE International UK reveals cross-party concern for the state of global gender equality and clear public appetite for bolder action.
As the Labour Party gathers for conference in Liverpool, the polls reveals the sense of deepening crisis for global gender equality is most widely felt amongst supporters of alternative parties on both the left and right – 49 per cent of Reform UK and 55 per cent of Green Party supporters say threats have risen in the last five years.
More concerningly, significant public concern is matched with extremely low awareness of Labour’s answer to the crisis. 77 per cent of adults polled said they know not much or nothing at all about what the Government plans to do to protect the rights of women and girls globally, since Andy Burnham became Prime Minister. Even amongst Labour supporters – the most positive of any party – more than half (57 per cent) said they didn’t know much or anything at all about government plans.
Claudia Craig, Interim Head of Advocacy at CARE International UK, said:
“Ministers should be in no doubt – the public can see women and girls’ rights are being rolled back around the world, and they expect the UK to do something about it. But what they’re seeing so far isn’t persuading them that the Government has a plan.
“At precisely the moment when anti-rights movements are becoming more organised, and emboldened to erode the global consensus on gender equality, the British public should not have to guess what their Government is doing about it.
“Alongside its welcome commitments to prioritise gender across foreign policy, we urge ministers to remember to bring the public with them through bolder, faster progress."
In a compelling indication of bolder public expectations, the top priority for government action was standing up to people and organisations that erode the rights of women and girls, the leading choice for nearly a third of respondents (32 per cent) and favoured by a similar or greater share of people who support all five leading political parties.
Additionally, when offered a choice between the UK rapid action with a smaller coalition of countries, or taking longer to build a broader international coalition, 45 per cent favoured acting quickly, 13 points higher than the proportion who chose the latter.
The poll also indicates that using the aid budget to protect the rights of women and girls has become increasingly important for supporters of all parties – particularly Reform UK, for whom the net importance rating has climbed from 9 to 31 per cent since February 2025. A third or more of most party supporters said it was a very important use of the budget, including equal proportions of Labour and Greens (37 per cent).
Claudia continued:
“The Government cannot defend gender equality through warm words alone. We need to see bold and consistent support for women’s rights, including when doing so is politically difficult.
“We’ll be urging everyone we meet at conference to use Britain’s influence to back feminist organisations on the front lines and confront the forces seeking to turn back the clock.”
Notes to Editors
- For media enquires, please email press.uk@careinternational.org
- CARE International UK and the Fabian Society will be hosting an event at Labour Party Conference exploring the action needed to safeguard hard-won progress, tackle emerging threats and accelerate the advancement of equality worldwide.
- The polling was conducted by More in Common on behalf of Care International UK. More in Common polled 2130 adults across Great Britain via an online survey between 4 - 6 September. Respondents were weighted according to age/sex interlocked, region, 2024 General Election vote, ethnicity, and education level. Full data tables are available at: Polling Tables Archive - More In Common. More in Common is a member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules.
