Women MPs back May after Vaz’s ‘thin’ comment

London Evening Standard/London

A senior Labour MP was criticised yesterday for highlighting Home Secretary Theresa May’s “thin” appearance.

Keith Vaz, chairman of the Commons home affairs committee, tweeted: “A bit worried about home secretary she is looking a bit thin these days. A new diet or pressure of work?”

Equalities Minister Helen Grant immediately heaped praise on May, the most senior woman in government. “She looks fantastic, she is fantastic. She works incredibly hard,” she said.

On Vaz’s tweet, she added: “Would the same be said of a male MP... who knows?” Campaigning Tory MP Claire Perry said: “I think she looks elegant, healthy and fabulous!”

And fellow Conservative MP Harriett Baldwin said: “Twitter is a medium that people say silly things (on). I’m sure he would apologise if he thought about it.”

But other women Conservative MPs, who did not wish to be named, said they had noticed that the home secretary had lost weight, with reports that she has shed nearly two stone by dieting.

May, 56, works out at the gym and goes mountain walking in Switzerland. She is also said to have struggled to shake off a flu-like bug which lasted weeks.

May, who has been home secretary for far longer than many of her predecessors, gave an insight into her work ethos when talking about German Chancellor Angela Merkel. She said: “There are still people who don’t rate her, are a bit dismissive, perhaps because of the way she looks and dresses. And she goes walking in the Tyrol and all that sort of stuff.

“What matters is, what has she actually done? And, when you look at her abilities in terms of negotiation, and steering Germany through a difficult time, then hats off to her.”