Why the next Senedd could be the least representative of women everThe Senedd hit the headlines back in 2003 when it became the first legislature in the world to reach 50:50 gender parity between men and women. It was a proud moment for our country and...Posted 08 Apr 2025
A big win for fairer politics: Why Section 106 mattersHow many women stand for election every year? It’s hard to tell. That’s because right now, parties don’t have to publish information on the diversity of their candidates. However, last month, the Minister for Women...Posted 19 Feb 2025
Slow progress as women finally make up 40% of ParliamentThe 2024 General Election saw in a Labour Government and a brand-new cohort of MPs (335 new MPs) elected; but with all this churn how representative is our House of Commons? Before the election we...Posted 10 Jul 2024
Candidate selections reflect the barriers for women in politicsLast week, all UK political parties confirmed which candidates they were standing in each constituency for the 2024 general election. Including independents, a total of 4,515 candidates will be fighting for a seat in the...Posted 20 Jun 2024
Voters prefer decisions made by panels balanced between men and womenMen still dominate political decision-making in the United Kingdom. Women hold just one or two seats on prestigious select committees in the House of Commons, like Defence, Foreign Affairs, and Justice. No women sit on...Posted 21 Nov 2023
Political parties – what are your plans to make a more diverse Senedd?On first glance, the Senedd might appear relatively diverse for a political institution in the UK. It made headlines in 2003 when it became the first legislative body in the world to have 50% women....Posted 17 Aug 2020
There’s an easy way to tackle the ‘political gender gap’ – what’s the government waiting for?It’s no news that British politics has a big problem with gender diversity. Just a third of MPs and councillors are women. Established prejudices need challenging, social media trolls need stopping and there must be...Posted 02 Jul 2018
Four ways Westminster’s politics needs fixing this Democracy WeekMonday marks the start of the first ‘National Democracy Week’ – the government’s initiative to encourage democratic participation. It has been established on the premise that “regardless of who we are or where we are...Posted 29 Jun 2018
How Westminster’s voting system is holding back gender equalityIn the centenary month of women securing the franchise, looking back on the politics of previous decades throws up some grim reminders of discrimination. Take just one: when Janet Fookes was first elected to represent...Posted 13 Feb 2018
Where are the women in May’s local election?Since the Prime Minister’s unexpected announcement of a General Election last week there’s been little time to talk of anything else. Our 24 hour news cycle is now dominated by images of May, Corbyn et...Posted 27 Apr 2017