A fter their first full week as national style influencers, some senior Labour women may be wondering what, if anything, could get them recognised as politicians. Will their only respite come when the Duchess of Sussex, the traditional target for instant media bitching, again wears something her UK adversaries find too costly, too “quasi-royal” or, if all else fails, too warm? Here’s an idea: could they not try to look more Boris Johnson? After some initial revulsion, his glutton-meets-vagrant outlandishness became so unremarkable that he was finally reduced, when starved of attention, to running about in a formal shirt, shorts and dress shoes. And even then no headlines chastised him, like the recent one illustrated with a full-length picture of Sue Gray, Keir Starmer’s chief of staff, in clothes the Mail disliked :“Sue, you work for the Labour party.
.. not the pyjama party!” Nor, however disgraceful his appearance at significant events, was Johnson seriously reproached for not caring.
But here’s a review of Bridget Phillipson’s dress and jacket, confirming that all we really want from an incoming education secretary is a directional statement piece: “This is becoming a go-to look which does women in the public eye a disservice, there are more modern, comfortable options out there.” Get back to us, Bridget, when you’ve smartened up. That some outfits have been approved – step forward Rachel Reeves, your trouser suits have impressed even Nadine Dorries.
