Press Release

50:50 Parliament Question Time, April 21

Contact: Frances Scott, Founder & Director, 50:50 Parliament - 07878 763 821 [email protected] Or: Rachel Millichip, 50:50 Parliament - 07821 685 725. [email protected] ______

Why does a woman need to be asked three times to stand for elected office when men don’t even need to be asked?!

Are we ever going to achieve gender equality in local or national government?

How can we all help women in politics?

On Wednesday evening (April 21 at 8.00 pm) a live audience have the rare opportunity to question a cross-party panel of MPs at the live 50:50 Parliament Question Time event.

This live Zoom session allows participants to put questions to politicians and take part in the debate. They will hear from MPs on what helped them get selected and elected, and about the advantages and pitfalls of being a woman in Parliament. We welcome men as part of 50:50 because to achieve this objective we need them on our side!

Professor of Politics and Gender Sarah Childs, author of the Good Parliament Report, brings her expertise and experience to the event as its host.

Hosting: Sarah Childs - Professor of Politics and Gender at Royal Holloway, University of London. Taking part are: Julie Marson MP, Vice-chair Conservative Candidates Committee Charlotte Nichols MP, Labour Shadow Minister for Women and Equalities Kirsten Oswald MP, SNP Shadow Minister for Women and Equalities Sarah Olney MP, Lib Dem spokesperson on Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Florence Eshalomi MP, Labour MP for & Member of the Guy Opperman MP, Conservative, Co-chair of Women to Win for four years

Founder of 50:50 Parliament Frances Scott said:

“We want women to feel they can get involved in politics, that politics is for everyone, with no barriers. This event is a great opportunity for anyone to take part, from their homes, and hear how we can all support women in getting selected and elected.

“If men outnumber women by 2:1 in the room then the male view will dominate. Women need to have an equal voice when it comes to economic policy, health, welfare, education, defence strategy, climate change and more.

“Parliament should be leading the way in showing respect for women, our life experiences and our opinions. It has to start at the top.”

Frances Scott, Prof Sarah Childs or any of the panellists are available to discuss why the time is now for women to come forward and stand for selection and election.

Additional Information

About 50:50 Parliament

50:50 Parliament’s mission is to build an inclusive gender-balanced parliament that draws on the widest possible pool of talent. We encourage women in all their diversity and from across the political spectrum to stand for elected office at a local and national level throughout the UK. We offer them a network of support and advice for as long as they need us. https://5050parliament.co.uk @5050Parliament

50:50 Question Time host:

Sarah Childs is a Professor of Politics & Gender at Royal Holloway, University of London. She is the author of The Good Parliament Report 2016 - the backbone of the Gender Sensitive Parliament Inquiry by the Women & Equalities Select Committee. Sarah's research centres on the theory and practice of women’s representation, gender and political parties, parliaments and institutional change.

50:50 Question Time panel guests:

Julie Marson has been the Conservative MP for Hertford and Stortford since the 2019 general election. She was the first woman to hold that seat. 2019 was her third time standing as a parliamentary candidate. She is also Parliamentary Private Secretary at the Ministry of Justice and vice-chair of the Conservative Candidates Committee.

Charlotte Nichols has been the Labour MP for Warrington North since her election in 2019. In November of last year, Charlotte was appointed as Shadow Minister for Women and Equalities. Before she became an MP Charlotte was a women’s officer for Young Labour and worked as a trade union official for the GMB.

Kirsten Oswald is the deputy leader of the Scottish National Party group in Westminster. Kirsten joined the SNP in 2014, having become politically active in the run-up to the independence referendum. First elected to represent East Renfrewshire in 2015, she lost her seat in the snap General Election in 2017 but was elected again with an increased majority in 2019. She is the first female Business Convener, or Chair of the SNP. Before becoming an MP Kirsten was the Head of Human Resources at South Lanarkshire College for 12 years.

Florence Eshalomi has been the Labour MP for Vauxhall since 2019. She has also been a member of the London Assembly for and Southwark since 2016, where she is the chair of the London Assembly Transport Committee. Before winning her London Assembly seat Florence worked as a public affairs account manager.

Guy Opperman is the Conservative MP for Hexham and has been an MP continuously since 6 May 2010. Guy was co-chair of Women to Win for 4 years and has coached over 250 female candidates. He currently holds the Government post of Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions). He spent 20 years as a barrister of which 15 years were spent predominantly at the criminal bar.

Sarah Olney has served as a Lib Dem MP for Richmond Park since 2019, and previously from 2016 to 2017. Sarah has been the Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Transport and for Business and Industrial Strategy since January 2020 and was formerly an accountant.

Registration Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_je5XA4lESw-_jM66DoNNNA