3 minute read
50:50
There are 32 million women in the United Kingdom and yet female representation in politics stood at merely 32% as of the 2017 General Election. It seemed unlikely to me that, out of those 32 million, only a handful were willing to stand, to represent their constituents’ views, to inspire change and to make a positive difference. Psychologically speaking, it takes women four more times than men to be told that they should consider standing in an election before they will consider it - maybe we aren’t trying hard enough to ask and ask again.
Currently, men outnumber women 2:1 in the corridors of power, only 8% of the House of Commons are from an ethnic minority background and the average age of an MP is fifty. The House of Commons represents the constituents’ views and discusses national issues on behalf of the diverse society in which we live and yet the make-up of parliament still doesn’t reflect this level of diversity. To build a future, that better represents the needs of the nation, it should be essential to collect a range of perspectives and experiences in government where decisions are being made. It is also interesting to consider that being a member of Parliament often requires a long commute, a commitment to working unsociable hours and a limited support system for those on parental leave. In essence, it could be argued that
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the job itself has been tailored to the type of employee parliament is used to and, in doing so, the system narrows the talent, diversity and circumstance of the people who are able to stand for election. Meaning that even 100 years after women won the right to vote, the struggle for equal representation in politics continues.
Britain is currently sitting at 40th in the world for female representation in Parliament and is only five places ahead of Afghanistan, one of the most dangerous countries in the world to be born a woman. Countries that currently rank in the top 10 in parliamentary gender equality include Senegal and
Rwanda, which have now become some of the most stable countries in Africa, although it is difficult to say if the two factors are linked. In Rwanda for instance, since the achievement of 50:50 parliament, laws have been passed that protect children from violence as well as laws that allow women to inherit land. Furthermore, in Senegal, the increase in female members of parliament has meant that a greater share of the country’s GDP is allocated to schooling, so that more girls are able to receive an education. In the UK the benefits of a gender balanced parliament could be instead used to help combat domestic violence (which affects one in every four women) stop women
bearing the brunt of austerity measures and to figure out why, curiously, there is a tax on tampons but not on razors. Joni Lovenduski, Professor of Politics at Birkbeck, has explained that: “Evidence from more balanced legislatures than ours shows that, as membership of women increases, so does the sensitivity of male MPs to the range of women’s concerns. So men can act for women, but they may be more likely to do so when there are more women around”.
50:50 Parliament, the campaign founded by Frances Scott in 2013, focuses on achieving gender equality in government through encouraging more women to stand for election. This campaign strives to break down barriers to succeed in creating a truly inclusive and representative institution in order to ensure better informed decision making. Supporters of the campaign are impatient for a change in Parliament and fear the 50 years it is claimed to take before true gender equality in government. All political parties and over 50,000 signatories to the 50:50 petition agree that a gender balanced Parliament would be more representative and better informed. “We need the best of both, men and women together at Westminster.” - Frances Scott.
