Question
Thank you, Mr Speaker—[Interruption.] On behalf of menopausal women around the world, I thank the House for that warm welcome. According to the big Menopause Mandate 2026 survey, 90% of working women say that symptoms affect them at work, yet only 39% of their employers have a menopause policy. How will the Government ensure that the menopause action plans set to be introduced next year will be implemented and monitored to support women through that very important stage of their life?
Answer
My hon. Friend has been an incredible campaigner on this issue and has done so much to help women across our country. We are taking action as a Government, ensuring that big employers have to produce action plans to say how they will support women going through the menopause, which many already do, because they know it is an incredible waste of talent to see women leaving brilliant jobs and careers just when they are getting into their stride.50% vibes
Verdict: RED (22/100)
The reply partly answered the first part of the question by pointing to a concrete mechanism: a requirement that large employers produce menopause action plans. It did not say how the implementation of those plans would be ensured or enforced. The second part, on how the plans would be monitored, reported on or reviewed, was not addressed at all, and the reply gave only general praise on that point. A member of the public would likely need to ask again about how progress will be tracked and enforced.
How we got there
| Question item | Coverage | Specificity | Rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
| How will the Government ensure that the menopause action plans due to be introduced next year are implemented? | Partially Addressed | Direct | The reply names a concrete mechanism, a requirement that big employers produce menopause action plans, which bears on how the Government will secure action. However, it addresses only the production of plans and says nothing about how their implementation itself will be ensured or enforced. |
| How will the Government monitor the menopause action plans due to be introduced next year, so as to support women through the menopause? | Not Addressed | Generic | Nothing in the reply addresses monitoring, reporting, review, or oversight of the action plans; the statements only describe the requirement to produce them and general praise. |