Carol Vorderman has called on the Minister of Women’s Affairs to resign after she “didn’t bother to show up” for a committee hearing on menopause – but the politician has accused the TV presenter of not dealing with facts.
Maria Caulfield took to Twitter a day after the Women and Equalities Committee session to say she was unable to attend as she was with campaigners at a meeting “that had been on the agenda for months”.
The MP, who is also minister for women’s health strategy, tweeted that she was “not a punching bag” and said anyone posting “misleading information” about her would be blocked on the social media platform.
Former Countdown star Vorderman posted a screenshot to Twitter indicating she had been blocked by the government minister, writing, “Maria, show some respect and RESIGN.”
When Ms Caulfield was challenged by another Twitter user about blocking Vorderman, she replied: ‘She didn’t point out any facts. I couldn’t attend yesterday because I saw female campaigners against painful hysteroscopy that had been on the agenda for months.
“I have given alternative dates to the committee and those are the facts.”
The committee said it had invited Ms Caulfield to appear before members to discuss the government’s plans for measures to combat menopause at work ‘but the minister declined the invitation’.
Vorderman had previously said she was “absolutely disgusted” by the words and actions of two government ministers, including Ms Caulfield, when the television presenter herself appeared before MPs to discuss menopause and the workplace.
The committee reportedly only received a response from the minister on the dates she was available after the letter they wrote to her, dated March 10, was posted to Twitter on March 17.
The committee is said to have contacted her a number of times to make an appointment for a hearing.
She has not stated any facts. I couldn’t attend yesterday because I saw female campaigners against painful hysteroscopy that had been on the agenda for months. I’ve given the committee alternate dates and those are the facts.
— Maria Caulfield MP (@mariacaulfield) March 23, 2023
Commission President Caroline Nokes confirmed at the end of Wednesday’s session that Ms Caulfield is expected to appear for a hearing in June.
Earlier in the session, both Vorderman and fellow presenter Mariella Frostrup expressed annoyance that Ms Caulfield did not ‘bother to turn up’.
Vorderman said she saw Mrs Caulfield ‘having a cup of tea’ at Portcullis House that day, adding ‘that’s not much of an example, is it?’
Frostrup told MPs that the current situation regarding menopause and women’s rights in the workplace feels like “treading water only amplified by the minister not bothering to turn up.”
Commons leader Penny Mordaunt rejected calls from Labor for Ms Caulfield to apologize for not attending the committee hearing and cited the minister’s earlier commitment.
She told business questions to the audience: “It is very ironic, especially in the wake of International Women’s Day, when we all used the hashtag ‘#AskHerToStand’ and want to support working women, that we are so quick to paint an incorrect picture about our female colleagues in this place. I find it shocking.’
Mrs Mordaunt added: ‘She has no apology whatsoever to the people in this House.’
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