Penny Mordaunt tells Whitehall bosses to ditch woke language like replacing the word ‘woman’ in official documents

Penny Mordaunt has told Whitehall chiefs to stop using woke language in official documents.

In a letter to permanent secretaries, the Commons leader said official bodies should avoid using ‘gender neutral language’ in contexts where traditional words like mother and father would be more accurate.

The Commons authorities yesterday issued new guidance on the drafting of legislation, which says gender neutral language should not be used when drawing up laws in areas that are ‘concerned only or mainly with people of one sex’, such as pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding.

In her letter to Whitehall chiefs, a copy of which has been seen by the Mail, Ms Mordaunt says the same rules should apply to all official documents, including those produced by Whitehall departments and arms-length bodies like Ofsted, the Office for National Statistics and the Environment Agency.

Ms Mordaunt says that the ‘huge progress’ made on gender equality means it is right to avoid using language that assumes only a man or a woman could perform a particular role.

But she adds: ‘However, there are a great many contexts in which a person’s biological sex is highly relevant and, in these circumstances, gender neutral language should be avoided.’ 

She points out that the guidance ‘states that, for example, in the context of pregnancy or women’s health, departments should avoid replacing a term like ‘woman’ with gender neutral terms such as ‘person’. 

In contexts such as these, sex-specific language should take precedence’. One ally said she was ‘basically telling them not to be so woke’.

Ms Mordaunt’s intervention follows growing complaints from Tory MPs about the use of woke language by public bodies.

Last month, former minister Sir John Hayes called for action to tackle ‘pernicious political correctness’ in public life.

Sir John, chairman of the Common Sense Group of Tory MPs criticised the Environment Agency for removing terms like ‘mother’ and ‘father’ from its documents. 

‘It sounds like nonsense, but it is actually much more sinister. Free speech is at stake,’ he said.

Last night, Sir John welcomed Ms Mordaunt’s intervention and urged public bodies to toe the line, adding: ‘It is really important that we send out a signal that the hundreds of public bodies funded by the taxpayer should not be pandering to the predilections of an out of touch minority.’

Ms Mordaunt’s comments will raise eyebrows at Westminster, where she has previously been known for having woke views.

It will trigger fresh speculation that she is preparing the ground for a potential future leadership bid.

Yesterday, she poured further fuel on the idea by revealing that she has courted 70 Tory constituency associations since Rishi Sunak became prime minister. 

The Daily Telegraph reported last week that Ms Mordaunt had visited 40 associations in order to raise her profile with party members.

In a letter to the newspaper yesterday, she revealed that the true figure is 70, but insisted there was no ulterior motive.

‘My motivation for doing so is straightforward: to support the campaign frontline against the threat of a Labour government,’ she said.