Jeremy Corbyn does not look like a typical politician. And the staunch left-winger doesn’t act like one, notably shunning the media since his
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Jeremy Corbyn does not look like a typical politician.
And the staunch left-winger doesn’t act like one, notably shunning the media since his landslide election as leader of Britain’s opposition Labour Party on Saturday.
But now he has spoken out in defence of his new shadow cabinet – responding to criticism about the jobs he has given to women.
“We have got a great team. Majority of women in the shadow cabinet for the first team in history. It’s a great team. Fantastic,” Corbyn told reporters as he walked towards Labour Party headquarters in London, alongside Deputy Leader Tom Watson.
Ed Miliband’s successor has gender balanced his team, appointing for example Angela Eagle as shadow business secretary, Diane Abbott at international development and Lucy Powell at education.
16 women, 14 men in #CorbynCabinet. How it compares to government/Westminster in terms of female representation pic.twitter.com/ttDZZ1fqhf
— Press Association (@PA) September 14, 2015
But traditionally top portfolios like foreign affairs and finance have gone to men – the latter given to fellow hard-left veteran John McDonnell, who supports renationalising banks.
McDonnell, the new Shadow Chancellor, has listed “fomenting the overthrow of capitalism” among his interests.
And he once quipped that if he could return to the 1980s he would
assassinate ex-premier Margaret Thatcher, later apologising for a comment he said was a joke.