Nick Ferrari slams Met terror chief for wearing 'menopause vest', as creator defends him

14 November 2022, 11:53

Founder of the MenoVest defends the Met Police's anti-terror chief

The founder of MenoVest, a vest replicating the symptoms of menopause, challenged LBC's Nick Ferrari by championing the top cop for "showing leadership" by wearing the garment.

Founder of Over the Bloody Moon, the creators of the MenoVest, Lesley Salem, spoke to LBC's Nick Ferrari to “put into context” the MenoVest and how it can be used.

The conversation followed a discussion around the Metropolitan Police’s anti-terror chief, Matt Jukes, wearing the vest that simulates menopausal hot flushes.

Mr Jukes, who wore the vest at a meeting in October to mark Menopause Awareness Month, was accused of engaging in a 'woke stunt'.

Nick weighed in on the stunt earlier in the show, arguing: “Isn't the job of the police actually to nick the burglars and the thieves and the robbers and everyone else [and] not to go around wearing a vest? Seriously."

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The founder explained the MenoVest is used “as a training tool alongside workshops, learning exhibitions and training programmes.”

Ms. Salem added: “We go through the many different symptoms and the unique and diverse experience that menopause creates.

“When Matt Jukes wore it, it was following a whole days event that we had done previously."

“The MenoVest is being developed to build empathy and to cultivate conversations”, the founder clarified.

“Can you tell me how it works?” Nick asked.

Ms Salem explained that the training comprises “different challenges” including “disrupted sleep the night before” wearing the MenoVest as well as skipping breakfast so that participants “feel hazy” at work.

Nick interjected: “But assistant commissioner Jukes didn’t do any of this did he?”

“Yes there was a challenge absolutely - there was a challenge that was given to him and all of them”, the MenoVest founder responded before adding that she believed Mr Jukes went without sleep as part of the challenge.

After Nick complained that “an hour is not enough” to replicate menopause, Ms. Salem explained that “the point is that currently there is silence in the workplace around menopause.”

She said: “We encourage and we know that when senior leaders in organisations go through this, it’s encouraging pro-menopause support and it opens up a conversation that previously was not there.”

“This is about a senior leader who is showing leadership”, Ms Salem added.

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