From ‘i’m not a feminist, but…’ to ‘call me an old-fashioned feminist…’: Conservative women in parliament and feminism, 1979-2017

Feminism is generally not associated with Conservative politicians. Yet in 2018, politicians as diverse as Theresa May, Amber Rudd and Nadine Dorries claim to be feminists, and argue that their beliefs-such as limited taxation and a reduced state-do not impede their feminism. This article analyses the relationship between female Conservative Parliamentarians and feminism, from the time of Thatcher to May, and argues that Conservative women have projected an abstract version of feminism which helped them construct their own identity; both through distancing themselves from it during Thatcher’s era, and co-opting it during the present day.