Womens representation and equality policy

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Womens representation and equality policy

• Professor Joni Lovenduski
• Birkbeck College
• University of London

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Themes

• Dual process
• Equality policy to achieve womens representation
• Womens Representation to achieve equality

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Kinds of equality policy

• Equality rhetoric
• Equality Promotion
• Equality Guarantees

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Equality Rhetoric

• Words Discourse - Talk
• Aims to get public acceptance of claims for
  representation or presence

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Equality Promotion

• Aims to include those who are currently not
  included. Examples are targets, incentives,
  special training policies

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Equality Guarantees

• Concentrates on outcomes
• Quotas
• Positive discrimination
• Positive duty

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Sectors of equality policy

• Politics
• Work
• Family
• Public Services
• Citizenship

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What else happens when the numbers of women
change?UK exampleRepresentation policy
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Example UK Political Representation

• Grew
• But not so much!
• Around 20 per cent Parliament

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Numbers of Women MPs 1997-2005, by Party
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Who changed?

• Voters
• Political parties
• Womens movements
• The state

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Voter change

• Declining votes
• Declining party loyalties
• Fragmentation and segmentation
• Available for new coalitions

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Political parties

• Party democracy
• Changing party systems
• Contagion effects went from one party to
  another

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Movement change and state change

• Womens movements more feminist,
• feminist movements, more statist
• State institutions changed goals changed forms

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Womens movements

• Feminists resist state
• 1970s no engagement with state institutions
• 1980s enter political parties
• 1990s mobilise in political parties
• 2000.. spread to all parties
• Feminists engage state

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State change

• State reconfiguration
• Service orientation
• Decentralisation
• Different functions at different levels
• Partnerships with NGOs

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Obstacles

• Gendered Institutions masculinity and state
  structures

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Conclusion Does more womens representation mean
more equality?

• The promises new policies and new politics
• Women representatives will represent womens
  interests
• Politics will change
• Policies will improve

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New policies

• Violence to women
• Womens representation
• Improved equality legislation
• The gender duty
• Childcare
• Single mothers
• Work life balance

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Wider system changes

• Reforms of parliament
• Reform of systems of public appointment
• Increases in womens participation

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