Coronavirus has given feminists a bigger fight

There was much to raise the eyebrows after Boris Johnson’s address to the nation last weekend. Not least the content, which has suddenly reignited the battle of the sexes.

Those who cannot work at home can return to work, we were told, but schools will only reopen for select years. Which means the parents of those not in those years are still hamstrung. But what if they cannot work in the home? Who will look after little Suzie? As a nation of confused working mothers pointed out, it would very likely be Suzie’s mum, rather than dad.

Mr Johnson mentioned people in “construction” and “manufacturing” as the sorts who could not work at home, and thus could return to work. The sorts of people who work in construction and manufacturing are men.

British women were left scratching their heads – how exactly did the new guidance apply to them? What about the people – women – who tend to work in or run businesses such as nail salons, hairdressers, yoga studios and spas? Women were also quick to notice that the Government had specified only two typically female lines of work being permitted to restart: cleaners and nannies, creating the uncomfortable impression to many that while the Prime Minister’s top team are clear on the value of having women to clean up for you and look after your kids, an appreciation of women’s desire to work in other fields is more opaque.

The battle has ignited on other well-trammelled fronts too. Lockdown has exacerbated domestic violence, reminding us of the physical threat men pose.

Biology has also shot to the fore for those of us in our late 30s, who feel our youth and with it, our appeal, fading fast. Now, with dating off the cards indefinitely, we’ve been made to feel we’re withering on the vine. This is neither fair nor right. But it is, alas, reality.