Lucy Powell, the deputy leader of the Labour party, has accused Downing Street of operating a “boys club” culture that silenced critics through factional briefings. Powell, who has personal experience of what she calls “unpleasant” briefings, said the atmosphere left people afraid to speak out or challenge the official line. She specifically pointed to a pattern of anonymous nasty briefings disproportionately targeting women in the Cabinet, including herself, Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson, and Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper. “It was not a meritocracy in any sense and not a broad church,” she lamented.

Powell expressed hope that incoming Prime Minister Andy Burnham would change this culture, noting that things had already improved under senior Labour women in recent months. Burnham has vowed to sack any staff caught briefing against or undermining women in his team. “If anyone in my team was found to have done that, they would be out of the door. Their feet wouldn’t touch the floor,” he told the women’s parliamentary Labour party.

The intervention comes amid pressure on Burnham to appoint a high number of female cabinet ministers, especially if he replaces Rachel Reeves with a man in the Treasury. Labour’s female MPs have written to Burnham asking for a 50/50 gender split for ministers and staff. Powell declined to dictate cabinet picks but stressed that “better decisions” come from diversity at the top.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch dismissed the Labour women’s complaints as “moaning,” suggesting they should challenge for leadership if they want change. Powell countered that the debate wasn’t about quotas but about ensuring all voices are heard, noting that “sometimes the blokes are a bit better at advancing their own causes.” She insisted that a culture embracing differing views produces better policy and national outcomes, not self-indulgent navel-gazing.