Brighton Short Breaks considers Brighton and Hove exhibiting its claim as the most Right On in the United Kingdomthis week with the occurance that it is the first time a parliamentary election has found an all-female listing of campaigners.
20 years after Mrs Thatcher broke political by being elected the first ever female Prime Minister the complaint that the lobbies of Westminster are still a male controlled hall ring just as loudly as ever! So, Brighton and Hove’s all female short list of Parliamentary nominees contributes some boost to a potential future shift of ground in the gender proportion in the political power domain .
Being quoted in The Argus , Fawcett Society chief executive Ceri Goddard said: “If all the candidates are women that is cause for celebration but also concern that it has taken until 2009, whereas all-male elections are still the norm.
“The voters if Brighton can be pleased that whom ever they elect they will be a step closer to closing the gender gap in parliament where currently less than 20% of our MP’s are women – less than Iraq, Afghanistan and Rwanda.”
‘Less than Iraq, Afghanistan and Rwanda……… ‘ – personally that peculiar assertion left me somewhat abashed about the state of our governmental arena and speculative as to the reasons for male mastery above and beyond the historical precedence that men should have it all their own way – and its a whole Pandoras box of discourse that is better left for a different site .
But my resolve here today is as – as always – to fly the flag for Brighton and Hove and evidence how smart thinking and politically awake our home city is, and having a ratio of men to women in parliament more true of the population, is in my belief, a whole step in the right direction!
