Labour MPs urge Starmer to set targets to boost number of male teachers in England

Men and Boys group of MPs addresses ‘crisis of masculinity’ and joins campaign for longer paternity leave

Government ministers have been urged to set targets to boost the number of male teachers in England , as backbench MPs seek to capitalise on turbulence in the Labour party to influence government policy.

With the government in disarray after the shock resignation of the defence secretary this week, MPs are seizing the moment to embark on a battle of ideas, including tackling toxic masculinity, which they argue has played a role in violent anti-immigrant disturbances.

The Labour Men and Boys group are also putting pressure on Keir Starmer , or his replacement, to increase paternity leave. More than 50 MPs, including the former deputy leader Angela Rayner and the former health secretary Wes Streeting, have worn England and Scotland football shirts calling for more than two weeks of paternity leave, which is among the worst in the OECD group of rich countries.

The MP for Hitchin, Ali Strathern, said that while the Westminster summer had been dominated “by personality stories and drama”, voters wanted a clear message that the government was on their side.

“For the rest of the country, this summer is about football, family and the cost of living,” said Strathern, the Labour group’s co-chair. “That’s why over 50 government MPs have donned these shirts calling for extra time for dads – because the UK’s paternity leave offer is the worst in Europe and two weeks isn’t enough.”

He said the government’s pledge to recruit 6,500 additional teachers by the end of the parliament was welcome and should be accompanied by national marketing campaigns similar to those that have encouraged girls and women to seek jobs in Stem.

After unrest in Belfast and Southampton , it was vital that the government also recognised that boosting the number of male teachers was a key tool in combating the manosphere, said Peter Swallow, a former teacher and the MP for Bracknell. Only 24% of teachers in England are men, according to DfE data . In primary schools the figure is 14%; the figure is 35% in secondary education and 3% in early years.