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!

Quiz

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.

Suffragettes

fought for women’s suffrage since the early twentieth century. British men and women had already been arguing for women’s suffrage since the 1860s, but the movement for women’s votes gained momentum when Emmeline Pankhurst and her daughters Christabel and Sylvia founded the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) in 1903. The WSPU, a women-only organisation, became more militant over the years, as the government refused to support women’s right to vote.

Separatist Feminism

radical feminists who do not believe men can ever disinterestedly introduce genuine equality and conclude women need to achieve equality separately. This could entail women withdrawing from working, casual or intimate relationships with men.

Radical Feminism

argues that society is dominated by men who use their power to oppress women into occupying subordinate gender roles. They urge proactive action to challenge and overcome such oppression.

Gender

refers to ‘the roles, behaviours, activities, attributes and opportunities that any society considers appropriate for girls and boys, and women and men. Gender interacts with, but is different from, the binary categories of biological sex’ (World Health Organization: ‘Gender’, https://www.who.int/health-topics/gender (accessed 25 July 2020)).

LGBTQ

lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer.

Speaker of the House of Commons

elected by all MPs to be the chief officer and highest authority of the Commons. The Speaker presides over the Commons’ debates by keeping order and calling MPs to speak.

Leader of the House of Commons

the Leader organises government business in the Commons and works closely with the government’s Chief Whip. The position is particularly important when the government does not command a majority in Parliament. The Leader of the Commons is generally a cabinet member and therefore part of the inner circle of government.

Select Committee Chairs

in 2010, the House of Commons decided that the chairpersons of most select committees should be elected by a secret ballot of all MPs (rather than chosen by each committee, as previously). Once the allocation of the chair of each committee to a particular party has been agreed, select committee chairs have few formal powers and can only vote in the event of a tie. However, they play a key role in leading the committee’s work and setting the agenda, and they can also gain a high public profile.

Lord Speaker

the First Lord Speaker was elected by Members of the House of Lords in 2006. The responsibilities include presiding over business in the Lords’ chamber and speaking for the House on ceremonial occasions. The Lord Speaker also gives procedural advice and assistance.

Leader of the House of Lords

appointed by the Prime Minister. He or she is a member of the Cabinet and the most senior member of the government in the Lords. The Leader is responsible for the Lords’ business and leads a team of about 25 ministers and whips.