Politics UK

Eleventh Edition

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Chapter 10

Gender and British politics

Chapter Summary

This chapter has highlighted the slowly increasing feminisation of British politics that has taken place since the late 1990s. The number of women in Parliament at Westminster, in central government, in the devolved parliaments and executives, as well as in local government, is significantly higher than it was 20 years ago. More ethnic minority women have been elected to public office, too. British politics has also become a more open environment for the LGBTQ+ community, as the number of openly LGBTQ+ politicians is in-creasing.

Despite such progress, a gender power imbalance persists, as gender parity has not been achieved in the UK’s political institutions and women and LGBTQ+ people are not equal. Also, in parliament and the media – and in particular the right-wing tabloid press – female politicians are often patronised and trivialised, no matter how powerful they are. Most worryingly, increasing numbers of female candidates have been victims of harassment in recent years, and in particular those from ethnic and religious minorities. Thus, whilst significant progress has been made for women and LGBTQ+ people when it comes to gender equality legislation and anti-discrimination policies over the past decades, more remains to be done.

Learning Objectives

  • To gain an overview of the history of women’s and LGBTQ people’s representation in British politics.
  • To appreciate the gradual, but still unequal empowerment of women.
  • To understand the differences in gender politics between Westminster and the devolved parliaments in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
  • To investigate differences in female leadership and membership of Britain’s parties.
  • To examine what recent governments have done for women and LGBTQ people.
  • To understand that the House of Commons is still not a very ‘diversity-sensitive’ place.
  • To note that female politicians, and especially those from an ethnic or religious minority, are harassed more often than men.

Quizzes

Test your knowledge with the Chapter 10 quizzes!

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Discussion Questions

  1.  How have media portrayals of female politicians in the UK influenced public perceptions of women in leadership? Consider historical examples and recent trends.
  2. Despite progress, women and LGBTQ+ individuals still face barriers in UK politics. What are the main obstacles to achieving full political representation, and how could they be addressed?

Women in UK Parliament – A resource tracking women’s representation in the UK Parliament. (www.parliament.uk/about/parliament-and-women/women-in-parliament-today/)

Gender Quotas Database – A global resource on political gender quotas. (https://www.idea.int/theme/gender-and-inclusion)

IPU Parline – A database tracking female representation in national parliaments worldwide. (https://data.ipu.org/women-ranking/)

The Women’s Budget Group – An organization analysing the impact of public policies on women. (https://www.wbg.org.uk)

The Fawcett Society – A leading campaign group advocating for gender equality in the UK. (www.fawcettsociety.org.uk/)

Flashcards

Refresh your knowledge of key terms with this chapter’s flashcards.

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