According to Geri Halliwell, girl power has always been around – “whether it was Elizabeth I or the suffragettes”.

Chatting about the Spice Girls philosophy on BBC1’s Andrew Marr Show, the singer insisted that women continue to be empowered.

I’ve never really been sure what girl power is. It think it’s got something to do with making the Victory sign, wearing a leopard-print catsuit and being loud and irritating.

As far as female empowerment goes, the birthday card aimed at 13-year-old girls, highlighted in Saturday’s T&A, suggests there may still be some way to go.

“You’re 13 today!” chirrups the greeting, followed by: “If you had a rich boyfriend he’d give you diamonds and rubies. Well, maybe next year when you’ve bigger boobies.”

The card is sold under a brand with an address at Bradford’s Hallmark House. Hallmark says it was produced before the company took over the brand, and is now tracking down every copy to remove from sale.

It goes without saying that the birthday card is beyond inappropriate. But I’m afraid it’s no worse than the barrage of images from the music industry, TV, the internet and teen magazines that are piling pressure on today’s adolescent girls.

When I was 13 I looked like Holly Hobbie, with my hair in plaits and freckles on my nose. It was long before TOWIE and WAGs – back then the only mainstream glamour girls were on Page 3, and those pictures were confined to mechanics’ walls and not at all inspirational to my peers.

Today’s adolescent girls live in a world of spa parties, prom nights, stretch Limos, fake lashes, spray tans, nail art, hair extensions, killer heels and a frighteningly casual approach to plastic surgery.

Like many girls her age, my 14-year-old niece is an avid TOWIE watcher and knows all there is to know about the Kardashians. “That’s such a fake butt. OMG, she so needs to sack the stylist,” she muttered, flicking through a magazine recently.

With their fake nails, smartphones and faux street-talk attitude, girls her age are more sophisticated than I was 30 years ago, but adolescence is still a tricky transition and I don’t see orange Essex girls or millionaires’ daughters as particularly aspirational role models.

An investigation carried out by Bradford Mothers’ Union found that 80 per cent of parents were concerned about children’s exposure to sexual content, from the media and from high street sales of little girls’ clothes that include padded bikinis and strappy tops bearing slogans like “Boyfriend Magnet” and “Mini Babe”.

When young females are faced with such disrespect, the words “girl power” seem more hollow than ever.