Theresa May accused Jeremy Corbyn of “mansplaining” as the pair clashed over Saudi Arabia and homelessness at Prime Minister’s Questions.
It prompted the PM to reply: “I thank the right honourable gentleman for telling me it is International Women’s Day tomorrow – I think that’s what’s called mansplaining.”
Mr Corbyn had also challenged Mrs May over the UK’s relationship with Saudi Arabia ahead of a three-day visit by the country’s Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman.
Theresa May in her response accuses Corbyn of ‘mansplaining’ after he told her it was international women’s day tomorrow — cries of ‘shame on you’ from Labour backbenchers #PMQs
— Dan O’Donoghue (@MrDanDonoghue) March 7, 2018
The PM noted: “Can I just say as (Mr Corbyn) started on the issue of International Women’s Day, I welcome the fact the Crown Prince will be sitting down with and the guest of a female Prime Minister.”
Mr Corbyn devoted the majority of his questions to homelessness and warned that the “growing number” of homeless people on Britain’s streets is a “mark of national shame” as he urged the PM to tackle the crisis.
Mrs May defended the Government’s actions, despite MPs hearing that it took four months for a homelessness taskforce to meet after it was first announced by Chancellor Philip Hammond.
Jeremy Corbyn says a rough sleeping task force has not yet met and “not a penny has been spent on that programme”. He asks: “Doesn’t the PM think it’s a little unambitious to say we’re going to tackle it by 2027.”
— Harriet Line (@HarriLine) March 7, 2018
Speaking in the Commons, Mr Corbyn said Mr Hammond announced last November details of the taskforce plus £28 million for three pilot schemes to tackle homelessness – although he said he understood it had not met and no cash had been spent.
Mrs May replied: “The taskforce he referred to has in fact met – it met today.
“But more importantly … this isn’t the only group of people we bring together to look at rough sleeping.”
She said around half of rough sleepers have a mental health problem, with money offered to support such services.
Mrs May went on: “If he really cares he’ll look at the complexity of this issue and recognise it’s more than just giving people a roof over their head, it’s about dealing with the underlying problems that lead to them rough sleeping in the first place.”
Mr Corbyn noted: “I’m glad the Government showed such urgency in setting up this taskforce that it took four months to have a meeting of it – and it still hasn’t actually achieved anything.”
Mrs May says that ‘nobody in this House wants to see anybody sleeping rough in this county’ — she then details the steps the Government is taking to end rough sleeping #PMQS
— Dan O’Donoghue (@MrDanDonoghue) March 7, 2018
Mr Corbyn, in his final remarks, said some of Mrs May’s words would not offer much comfort to the “rough sleepers that I meet that are begging every day just to find enough money to get into a night shelter”.
He warned of cuts to council budgets, adding: “After this deathly cold winter we have more than twice as many people sleeping rough on our streets. Just one step away from that fate are 60,000 homeless households in temporary accommodation.
“We are the fifth richest country in the world. The growing number of people on our streets is a mark of national shame.
“With fewer social homes being built, less support for the homeless and a taskforce which has barely met, just how does the Prime Minister really propose to tackle the homelessness crisis?”
Mr Corbyn says the growing number of people sleeping on the streets is a mark of “national shame” #PMQs
— Harriet Line (@HarriLine) March 7, 2018
Mrs May, in her reply, said: “Who said the last Labour government’s record was bringing misery and despair? The right honourable gentleman, the Leader of the Opposition.
“He said Labour didn’t have a good record on housing. I agree.”
