B&Q apologises after cabinet described as ‘easy to assemble, even if you're a girl'
The DIY shop listed a flatpack bamboo bathroom shelf on its website with the information: "Easy to assemble the cabinet even if you're a girl,' The Sun reported.
It said the 'inappropriate' remark had come from a third-party seller and apologised for any offence caused, the same newspaper reported.
'Tall storage cabinet is perfect for saving space, slim design to fit in almost any corner,' the production information read.
'Three shelves provide plenty of storage to keep essentials organised and neat, and the cabinet door provides added privacy. Easy to assemble the cabinet even if you're a girl.'
It comes after the DIY shop launched a 'Do The Lift Thing' campaign to 'showcase tradeswomen breaking down barriers'.
The project wanted to 'highlight the new movement of women in trades, while spotlighting the barriers preventing more girls and women entering the field'.
Supply and Logistics Director Amelie Gallichan-Todd said at the time of the launch: 'With only two per cent of trade professionals being women, B&Q is committed to tackling this and has pledged £1m to fund trade apprentices across a variety of sectors, including carpentry, plumbing, painting and decorating.
'By showcasing successful women in these roles, we hope to inspire the next generation to pursue careers in trades, challenging stereotypes and changing perceptions.'
In the introduction to a 'gender pay gap report' last year, B&Q said: 'We're proud of the progress we're making. This is supported by 44 per cent of our management roles being occupied by women.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
10 minutes ago
- The Independent
Met Police set to increase use of facial recognition technology amid force restructure
Britain's biggest police force is set to more than double its use of live facial recognition. The move by the Metropolitan Police comes as it restructures to cover the loss of 1,400 officers and 300 staff amid budget shortages and will see up to10 deployments of the technology a week. As part of the latest details of its restructure, the Met announced that live facial recognition will now be used up to 10 times per week across five days, up from the current four times per week across two days. Earlier this month the Met revealed that it had made 1,000 arrests using live facial recognition to date, of which 773 had led to charge or caution. Part of the overhaul will also see officers moved to bulk up the force's public order crime team, as the Met said it has faced increased demand linked to protest-related crimes in the past two years. The squad will go from 48 to 63 officers due to a rise in the number of protests, particularly related to Israel and Palestine, as well as environmental issues. Force chief Sir Mark Rowley said: 'The numbers of protests have grown over the last couple of years. 'We don't have any powers that are there to reduce the number of protests, to cancel them. 'Laws are very permissive and encouraging of protests, which is entirely understandable, and I've got no objection to that, but what we've seen, unfortunately, is a proportion of those create crime and offences.' The facial recognition plans, however, have come under scrutiny. Charlie Whelton, policy and campaigns officer at Liberty, said: 'It's incredibly concerning to see an expansion of facial recognition, especially at a time when there is a complete lack of regulation governing its use. 'Any tech which has the potential to infringe on our rights in the way scanning and identifying millions of people does needs to have robust safeguards around its use, including ensuring that proper independent oversight is in place. 'The government must legislate now to regulate this technology, protect people's rights, and make sure that the law on facial recognition does not get outpaced by the use.' Sir Mark insisted that the technology is responsibly used. 'We're only using it to look for serious offenders like wanted offenders and registered sex offenders. 'We routinely put it out there and capture multiple serious offenders in one go, many of whom have committed serious offences against women or children, or people who are wanted for armed robbery. 'It's a fantastic piece of technology. It's very responsibly used, and that's why most of the public support it.' Officers are also being moved to neighbourhood teams to deal with street crime including phone thefts, anti-social behaviour and shoplifting, with 80 moved to the team that covers the West End, a rise of 50 per cent. Last month, retailers warned that flagship high streets such as Oxford Street in the West End were at risk without urgent national action on crime. While shoplifting hit a record high in 2024 with the number of offences surpassing 500,000 for the first time, High Streets UK, a group that represents 5,000 businesses, called for wider action to deal with all types of crime affecting high streets. 'The West End generates £50 billion for the UK economy,' Sir Mark said. 'It's an enormous wealth generator. It's important we police and protect that well. 'And we think there's more we can do on our own and working with them.' This will include patrolling the streets, 'taking on the pickpockets', and officers tackling gangs plotting to rob shops, he said. Another 90 officers are moving to neighbourhood teams that cover six hotspots for robbery and theft – Brixton, Kingston, Ealing, Finsbury Park, Southwark and Spitalfields. The Met is Britain's largest police force, which as of February had 33,201 officers, 11,319 staff, 1,460 police community support officers and 1,127 specials. Sir Mark warned in April that the force is facing a £260 million budget shortfall, with cuts removing the Royal Parks police and dedicated schools officers as a result.
The Independent
10 minutes ago
- The Independent
Your food shopping bill is set to increase. Here's how much
Food inflation is set to soar to 6 per cent by the end of the year, posing a "significant challenge" to household budgets just as Christmas approaches, industry leaders have warned. Retailers have cautioned against rising prices and potential job losses should the Chancellor hike taxes in the next budget, with two-thirds of chief financial officers expecting further price rises, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC). A survey by the BRC found that a striking 56 per cent of retail finance chiefs, representing over 9,000 stores, feel "pessimistic" about trading conditions over the next 12 months. The majority, 85 per cent, attributed past price increases to the previous budget's rise in employer national insurance and the national living wage, with two-thirds (65 per cent) anticipating further rises in the coming year. While current BRC figures place food inflation at 4 per cent, the organisation predicts this will climb to 6 per cent year-on-year by Christmas. It said: 'This will pose significant challenges to household budgets, particularly in the run-up to Christmas.' Other than cost increases, 42 per cent of chief financial officers said they had frozen recruitment, while 38 per cent said they had reduced job numbers in-store. This was reflected in the official job figures, with almost 100,000 fewer retail jobs in the first quarter of 2025 compared to the previous year, the BRC said. More than a third of CFOs (38 per cent) said they had cut investment in local communities, while 15 per cent had already delayed opening new stores. BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said: 'Retail was squarely in the firing line of the last budget, with the industry hit by £7 billion in new costs and taxes. 'Retailers have done everything they can to shield their customers from higher costs, but given their slim margins and the rising cost of employing staff, price rises were inevitable. 'The consequences are now being felt by households as many struggle to cope with the rising cost of their weekly shop. It is up to the Chancellor to decide whether to fan the flames of inflation, or to support the everyday economy by backing the high street and the local jobs they provide.' In January, the BRC predicted that food prices would rise by an average of 4.2 per cent in the latter half of the year as retailers battled increased costs from the budget. At the time, Ms Dickinson said modelling by the trade association and industry chiefs suggested there was 'little hope of prices going anywhere but up' as retailers faced higher national insurance (NI), national living wage and new packaging costs. Last week, market research firm Worldpanel by Numerator, formerly Kantar, reported UK grocery prices had increased at their fastest pace for 18 months amid growing concern from shoppers about the rising cost of living. Grocery price inflation accelerated to 5.2 per cent in the four weeks to July 13, up from 4.7 per cent a month earlier and the highest level since January 2024. The data indicated that rising prices are set to add an average of £275 to shoppers' annual grocery spending.
The Independent
10 minutes ago
- The Independent
Billionaire hotel tycoon reveals Heathrow Airport expansion bid with ‘shorter' third runway
A potential Heathrow Airport expansion could see a third runway added, but much shorter than previous proposals. Hotel tycoon Surinder Arora has published the plan which rivals a proposal from the airport's owners. The billionaire's Arora Group said the 'primary benefit' of the plan it submitted to the government is a shorter new runway which would avoid the costly and disruptive need to divert the M25 motorway. Building a 2,800-metre third runway instead of the full-length 3,500-metre runway planned by the airport would result in 'reduced risk' and avoid 'spiralling cost', the company said. A shorter runway could have limits on its use, although Arora Group insisted it would be able to accommodate aircraft of all sizes. Arora Group's Heathrow West proposal states the new runway could be fully operational by 2035, while a new terminal would open in two phases, in 2036 and 2040. The plan, developed with infrastructure company Bechtel, has a cost estimate of under £25 billion, not including the redevelopment of the airport's existing central area. Mr Arora, who is one of the largest landowners at Heathrow, said: 'After a decade working with our world-leading design and delivery team, I am very proud that the Arora Group can finally unveil to the UK government our Heathrow West proposal, which directly meets and supports the United Kingdom's primary objective of unlocking economic growth at the UK's only hub airport, with a strong commitment of doing so on-budget and on-time. 'The Arora Group has a proven track record of delivering on-time and on-budget projects including in and around Heathrow airport. 'We are delighted that the government has taken a common-sense approach to invite proposals from all interested parties for the very first time rather than granting exclusivity to the current airport operator, no matter its track record.' Mr Arora has repeatedly accused the airport of wasting money. In December 2024, French company Ardian completed a deal to become Heathrow's largest shareholder with a 23% stake, while Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund purchased a 15% share. Chancellor Rachel Reeves gave her backing for a third runway in a speech on growth in January. Heathrow will submit its own expansion plan to the government on Thursday. Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander will then review the Airports National Policy Statement, which provides the basis for decision-making on any Development Consent Order application. Heathrow is understood to be open to a discussion with airlines about building a shorter runway if it can deliver the same benefits. The airport declined to comment on the Arora Group's proposal.
