Politicians unite in minis after Italy’s deputy PM claims women in longer skirts ‘make better mothers’

Female politicians are using their hemlines in protest after Italy’s deputy prime minister claimed women who wear long skirts make better wives and mothers.

Speaking at a political event last Friday, Antonio Tajani, 73, said he would advise young men to marry “less flashy” women who “will be a good mother and stay true to the love she pledges in marriage … who perhaps wears skirts that are a bit longer than the others”, per The Telegraph.

Tajani, who is also the foreign minister, added that a “glamorous girl” may have “gone through a string of boyfriends, dumped them, walked out, and has a tendency to cheat”.

The remarks have ignited huge backlash, with even the Catholic Church responding; the head of the Italian Bishops Conference said, “Every word and every gaze directed at a woman must be filled with respect and admiration.”

Over the past week, numerous female MPs and senators have condemned Tajani’s words, wearing minis and shorter skirts to hammer the message home.

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Eleven female senators from several parties took a defiant stance at the Palazzo Madama palace in Turin, united in their above-the-knee hemlines.

“This is a gesture of freedom to say that we are free to dress as we wish,” Italia Viva’s Raffaella Paita told reporters.

“We believe that women’s freedom is measured by any gesture of freedom, including the length of a skirt or any other action that women want to take without being judged by men.”

Captioning a photo of herself in a mini on Instagram, MP Chiara Appendino similarly declared, “Our reliability is not measured in centimetres of fabric.”

“Tajani, am I not a ‘reliable’ woman? Am I not a ‘good mother’?” the former mayor of Turin began.

“In 2026, we cannot still be hearing a government minister explain that it is better to marry a woman who is less flashy and wears a longer skirt.

“Let’s leave the Middle Ages behind.”

Matilde Tura, a city councillor in Treviglio, wrote in a similar post, “If I had a daughter, on the other hand, I would tell her not to choose someone who judges her based on the length of her skirt.“

Tajani ultimately apologised for his comments, saying he “never intended to offend women”.

“I have never done so in my life, neither in my private nor in my public life,” he said in New York this week, where he is attending the UN General Assembly.

Politician Simona Malpezzi told La Sicilia this justificiation was “even worse” than the original comments.

“They do not realise what they are saying because it is ingrained in them. Instead, we must show that those phrases are unacceptable.”