Following Sir Keir Starmer's resignation, CARE International UK calls on the next Prime Minister to place the rights of women and girls and gender equality at the heart of Britain’s international agenda – not as an afterthought, but as a foundation to build a healthy, peaceful and prosperous society in Britain and around the world.
Polling by YouGov for CARE found that 85% of UK adults think the UK should be involved in addressing women and girls’ rights around the world, less than 4 in 10 (39%) of UK adults believed that Keir Starmer’s Labour government cared about the rights of women and girls.
Helen McEachern, CEO of CARE International UK said:
“The Prime Minister’s successor inherits the opportunity to repair the UK’s once leading commitment to gender equality. In a world growing more unequal, more unstable, and more hostile to women and girls, we cannot afford to step back.
One of the earliest indicators of a world in reverse is when women are held back. In the past year, the Labour Government has enacted profound cuts to international programmes that focus support for women and girls – at the very moment those rights are under attack.
What women and girls are asking for – wherever CARE works – is not extraordinary. It’s the chance to feel safe. To decide and to be heard. These are the same hopes that animate this country, the same measure by which any decent and fair society judges itself.
The window for different leadership is now open. We urge the next Prime Minister to bring the UK’s allyship on gender equality in line with where the public believe we should be – boldly and relentless supporting the rights of women and girls everywhere.”