David Cameron, I'm tired of hearing male politicians like you claim they stand for women because they have daughters

There is so much more to do - but all Dave responds with is "arm candy" at the Conservative Party Conference

David Cameron and education secretary Nicky Morgan meet pupils during a visit to the Green School For Girls on March 9, 2015 in London (Stefan Rousseau - WPA Pool/Getty Images)

In one of his most recent speeches, David Cameron did that thing that a lot of male politicians do to make it sound like they care about girls and women, when they actually don’t give a toss: he invoked his female relatives. “I’m a dad of two daughters," he said. "Opportunity won’t mean anything to them if they grow up in a country where they get paid less because of their gender rather than how good they are at their work. The point is this: you can’t have true opportunity without real equality."

It’s great that you have two daughters. Good for you, Dave. But I don’t care. And need I remind you that women and girls are more than mothers, wives, daughters, sisters and aunties. We’re not chattel or property. It seems you, and many other apparently feminist men or Men That Care About Gender Inequality need to be told that.

Nobody has to say that men are more than fathers, husbands, sons, brothers and uncles because it’s so obvious to us that men are human. Just like men are human, so are women, and that is what should motivate you, Prime Minister, to ensure that British women, like their male counterparts, have equal opportunities and are not discriminated against because of their gender. Not the fact that you’re a “dad of two daughters”. That’s not how patriarchy works.

But seeing as David Cameron has positioned himself as a Man That Cares About Gender Inequality, let’s look at the action he’s taken. Words are important, but it is not these words that will make Britain a better place for women. Actions are what will influence women’s lives. And looking at the statistics, action is needed now more than ever. In Britain, it is estimated than current or former partners kill at least 2 women each week, 85,000 women are raped and 400,000 sexually assaulted every year, and it's estimated that 65,000 girls under the age of 15 are at risk of female genital mutilation.

And what has been the government’s response to this? The very opposite thing they should be doing. Just last week, Tory MEPs voted against a resolution on disclosing the gender pay gap in the EU. This came after Cameron’s comment that he wanted his daughters to earn the same as men. And there have been deep cuts to very services that provide specialist help for women. None of the 46 Rape Crisis centres have secured funding beyond March 2016. Austerity is a feminist issue, argued Frances Ryan when it was found that women will be hit twice as hard as men by cuts. But that fell on deaf ears. Last year, Women’s Aid found that 6,337 of 20,736 looking for help at a refuge were turned away because of the lack of space, although the actual figure could be as high as 20,000 as only a third of town halls replied to the charity’s survey.

Women fleeing violent men were turned away because our government doesn’t care about women, or the problems with male violence.

And there’s more. The fact there is more actually makes me feel a little nauseous. There’s so much to do. The pay gap persists so women are essentially working for free 2 hours every day. Women make up the majority of carers, and they are the ones that face the inevitable setback in their careers. What about free and universal childcare, Prime Minister? 75 per cent of those who claim a carer’s allowance are women. Sexism in the workplace is just as rampant, and we’re expected to be good ladies and be quiet about it. Look at what happened to Charlotte Proudman when she spoke up. Our parliament is still only made up of 29 per cent of female MPs. And harassment of women’s bodies and male entitlement in the public space continues.

For girls my age, or David Cameron’s daughters’ age, sexist bullying at school is widespread; a new report last month showed unacceptable levels of sexual assault at schools. At university, lad culture flourishes. This year, an Oxford University college had to warn of an unprecedented scale of groping and sexual harassment. Meanwhile, the government hasn’t made it mandatory to teach consent and SRE in schools.

The Suffragettes said “deeds not words”. And I say deeds and words, Dave, at the very least. You can pat yourself on the back because you’ve done a good job and tried to fool us that you’re a Man That Cares About Gender Inequality with your speech and your use of women as “arm candy” at the Conservative conference. But I wasn’t fooled, and I’m waiting for your actions. Because if you don’t act – if we all don’t act – then Britain will continue to be a country where women are judged, discriminated and face violence because of their gender.

That’s the world I’m growing up in as a teenager myself - and the one your daughters are growing up in too. Perhaps, instead of letting us know that you have female relatives, you should think about the practical things you and your government could do. I am waiting, along with millions of other British women and men.

Because if you really cared, you would do something serious about it.