The following details have been supplied by the TUC:

An inquiry into work dress codes has exposed “widespread discrimination” against women, MPs have said.

The investigation was prompted by a petition, being debated by MPs, that called for a ban on requiring women to wear high heels at work. MPs said they were “shocked” by stories submitted as part of the inquiry, which included one case of a woman who had been told to dye her hair blonde. More than 152,000 people signed the petition set up by Nicola Thorp, after she was sent home from her temp job when she refused to wear shoes with a “2in to 4in heel” .

Helen Jones, who chairs the Petitions Committee, said: “It is fair to say that what we found shocked us.” She added that the inquiry “has exposed widespread discrimination against women, stereotypical views of what women should look like and dress like and behave like. It’s shown up out-dated attitudes towards women in the workplace, and it has shown that constantly women are belittled when they try to challenge those attitudes.”

Speaking in the debate, Labour’s Gill Furniss said her daughter had suffered a metatarsal fracture having had to wear high heels in a retail job.

For the Government, equalities minister Caroline Dinenage urged employers to review dress codes and make “dodgy 1970s workplace diktats” a thing of the past.

Commenting earlier this year, TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said: “It is unacceptable that in 2017 bosses are still forcing women to wear painful, inappropriate shoes and uniforms. Wearing high heels on a regular basis can cause foot, knee and back problems. High heels and make-up should be a choice, not a condition of the job.” She added that with employment tribunals fees running at up to £1,200 – even if you’re on the minimum wage – “many women can’t afford to challenge sexist policies. If ministers are serious about enforcing equality legislation then they should scrap tribunal fees immediately.”