Waging war on lapdancing clubs was Harriet Harman’s latest assault on “sexism in the City” to cause a stir. Yet even the Minister for Women’s many critics agree that she has succeeded in making workplace gender equality a serious political issue.

The Equality Bill will force change in some quarters while a new parliamentary initiative, Women for Boards, is trying to change the dire statistics: 62 per cent of FTSE 250 firms have no women on their boards.

“Progress can only be described as glacial,” says Mary Meaney, a partner at McKinsey & Co, the consulting firm, who leads the firm’s work on women. “It’s going to take 50 years to achieve some form of gender parity.”

She is concerned that in the recession more women appear to be leaving than their male counterparts and says the atmosphere created by the financial crisis may be the final straw.

“In many firms career progression rewards visibility and male leadership traits more than female — inclusive or empathetic. Many women don’t want to play that game,” she says.

One change heralded by the Equality Bill is the provision for “positive action”. Unlike positive discrimination, which gives minority candidates an advantage regardless of suitability for the job, positive action allows a company to choose on the basis of gender or race, for example, if both candidates are equally qualified.

Caroline Wilson, head of diversity at Eversheds, the law firm, is sceptical. “We don’t believe that you can be equally qualified,” she says. After 30 years of recruiting, she finds that one candidate always stands out on merit.

Eversheds is attempting to improve the statistics by introducing a new route that sidesteps the evenings and weekends usually required, to allow women with families a fair chance. While introduced as a way to boost the number of women, it is now just as popular with men,” Wilson says.

Several large employers in the UK, including Royal Mail and B&Q, have pronounced their commitment to flexible working. At Tesco a year ago 16 per cent of its directors were women; this year, 20 per cent are women. The supermarket chain admits that there is still a way to go. “We are aiming for 50:50,” says Sam Oliver, programme manager, diversity.

Women are paid 22 per cent less than men on average and 80 per less than men in bonuses, Although the Government shied away from making companies reveal pay packages, there is a threat that it will if the gap does not narrow. Some companies such as Aviva, the insurer, have introduced equal pay audits.

Kate Wood, global head of human resources at PA Consulting, says that the commercial motive for promoting women is as important as the ethics. Clients are increasingly demanding evidence of equality policies.

“They want to see that we are doing what we say we are going to do. I think that is very positive. It is good to have that external pressure.”

At PA Consulting, women returning from maternity leave are given a temporary 25 per cent uplift on their return to incentivise them to come back. Wood said there is no resentment from women not taking maternity leave. “If you show people that you’re concerned about all types of individual, everyone feels that they have a fair opportunity to succeed.”