25 June 2009

Jacqui Smith's 'Humiliation'

Former home secretary Jacqui Smith has spoken of the anguish caused to her family during the expenses scandal.

Ms Smith, the first woman to ever head-up the Home Office, said revelations her husband had charged the cost of two pay-per-view porn movies to the taxpayer were humiliating.

The MP said that during the media furore her eldest son was studying for his GSCEs.

She also hit out at the treatment of female politicians by the media, claiming at times women receive much harsher criticism in the press.

Ms Smith once dubbed "stroppy" by BBC Radio 4's Today show said the same term would never be used to describe a man.

Acknowledging the humiliation of her husband Richard Timney's televised apology outside their home, Ms Smith said it had been horrible for him.

He also issues an apology to his entire family, Ms Smith said.

Members of the press camped outside the family home for days. Discussing the period, the former Labour minister said: "I could have coped with it on my own but my oldest son was doing his GCSEs, and I just felt that it was not fair on all of them.

"After a while you know having your wife or your mum or your daughter or your sister called a liar and a thief by national newspapers and having to face that degree of scrutiny gets a bit wearing on the family and in many ways they're less protected than I am."

Ms Smith said the recent cabinet reshuffle, which has seen fewer female ministers, is not a reflection of equality in government.

Talking on the media's treatment of women in power, she said: "A lot of language that has been used, not only about me but about other women politicians as well, I just don't think would be used about men, actually."

Ms Smith was one of the first high profile ministers to resign from Prime Minister Gordon Brown's front bench team earlier this month.

She was followed by Hazel Blears, Beverly Hughes and Caroline Flint.

(PR/JM)