As we approach 100 years since Women received the
vote it is sad to note how under-represented women are in Parliament,
how small and lacking their voice is where it should be most heard.
I
think it is time for a radical overhaul. Every constituency should
elect one man and one woman to represent it in parliament. At a
stroke half of parliament would be female, and the voice of womanhood
would no longer be echoing off the glass ceiling that has so far
successfully stopped women from achieving equal representation, and
more importantly, has stopped women having an equal voice in shaping
this country.
To achieve this reform constituencies would have
to be redrawn, with each containing on average 200,000 people. This
would produce a parliament of about 600 MPs, of which 300 would be
women. End of problem. End of male dominance. The achievement of
truly liberating equal representation at a stroke.
The other way has been tried for nearly a hundred
years and has not worked. The glass ceiling seems just as firmly in
place than it was, if not more so. Effectively, by whatever means,
women are filtered out of reaching positions of power and influence,
and most importantly, out of their rightful place at the centre of
our democracy. 147 out of 650 is just not good enough after 100 years
of trying. A meagre 22.6%, with only 4 Cabinet Ministers, an even
more miserable 18%.
