Natasa Pantelic works for a Labour MP and founded the Labour Women’s Parliamentary Staff Network. She reflects on the achievements of Jacqui Smith, the first woman Home Secretary.
Sixteen years ago today (Wednesday 28th June 2023), Jacqui Smith walked into Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s Office – in the House of Commons – and was offered the job of Home Secretary, becoming the first woman in Britain to hold the role. She championed community involvement in policing, produced the first cross-government violence against women strategy, worked hard to tackle knife crime and was one of the key figures in the New Labour government.
Jacqui was the Labour MP for Redditch for 13 years between 1997 and 2010, holding a number of roles in government including Minister of State for Education and the Chief Whip before Home Secretary. I first met Jacqui in 2008 when the Labour government was publishing its green paper on policing and over the years she’s evolved into serving the public in other ways; through her work improving standards in public life with the Jo Cox Foundation, training women for public office in the Labour Women’s Network, her weekly podcast ‘For the Many’ with LBC broadcaster Iain Dale and her tireless work in chairing Sandwell Children’s Trust and Barts Health NHS Trust. The list could go on!
Not so long ago, I asked Jacqui what she said when she first walked into the Home Office on the day she was appointed. She remembered: “I said there was no greater honour for a politician than to be given responsibility for the security of our communities and our country, and that you needed to deliver that in order for people to be able to make the most of their lives and that was what I was going to focus on.” Less than 24 hours later, a car full of explosives was discovered in Haymarket (unexploded) and then Glasgow Airport was the target for a terrorist attack. She later produced the first public counter terror strategy to try to prevent such incidents from happening again.
Countless research shows women leaders make a difference in politics and public life, encouraging more collaborative and inclusive ways of working, leading to better decision-making and outcomes for our communities. They also inspire young women to get interested and engage in the political process which is vital for our democracy. The more women that get involved and use their voice for change – whether in local or national government – the better. Jacqui was a big believer in working with others as Home Secretary, often reaching out to her European counterparts to form strong relationships to achieve outcomes for the country and has supported women through the Labour Women’s Network over the past 10 years. She also faced sexist newspaper reports that focused more on what she looked like than what she said.
I asked her about women in today’s politics – worth remembering her cleavage was mentioned more times than what she actually said in Parliament – and ensuring that more women don’t just stand for elected office but stay in office when they get elected. Jacqui said: “It’s an attack on democracy if women are not able to stand for and stay in politics. It’s not some nice to have, identity politics issue. This is fundamental to our democratic system. Secondly, politics is a team sport…the strongest people are the people who build the best teams around them….I had 13 years in Parliament and 10 as a minister and I’ll always be proud of that. I would encourage anybody to do it but build a team around you.”
There are so many more things to say about Jacqui but today we celebrate her as the first woman Home Secretary, smashing glass ceilings and inspiring other women to follow in her footsteps.