LONDON — Kemi Badenoch’s elevation as leader of Britain’s Conservatives is a historic moment in British politics — but you can expect the Tories to take it in their stride.
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
| Quota Information | Parliament Information | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Are there legislated quotas? | No | Structure of parliament | Unicameral |
| For the Single/Lower House? | No | >Current members | 650 |
| Percentage of women | 34.00% | ||
| Source: Gender Quotas Database | Source: New Parline | ||
Note: this page was last updated on October 13, 2021.
Election for:
British House of Commons 2019
December 17, 2025
Not ‘just part of the job’: How parliaments are countering violence against women in politics
July 31, 2025
'We're really excited about votes for 16 and 17-year-olds'
The Government has announced plans to allow 16 and 17-year-olds to vote across the UK by the next general election.
June 16, 2025
MI6 appoints first female chief in 116-year history
MI6 will be led by a woman for the first time in the foreign intelligence service's 116-year history.
May 26, 2025
Former U.K. prime minister Theresa May says ex-world leaders need to stop commenting on everything: ‘be a measured voice’
Theresa May, Britain’s ex-prime minister, says that rather than reaching for social media the second major news breaks, former world leaders would be better off taking a step back and bringing
May 21, 2025
Labour cancels its women’s conference after supreme court gender ruling
Labour has cancelled its national women’s conference and restricted all-women shortlists as it awaits full guidance from the equalities watchdog, drawing criticism from transgender rights and gender-critical campaigners.
April 17, 2025
Growing threats faced by women candidates undermine our democracy
As Liberal MP Pam Damoff prepares to leave politics, she joins other Canadian women MPs in warning that growing threats and harassment are
April 17, 2025
Women's campaigners celebrate court win - but what will it change?
The UK Supreme Court has unanimously and unambiguously backed the argument that the definition of a woman in the Equality Act should be based on biological sex.
January 27, 2025
Attacks on Jess Phillips show how online abuse of women is intended to keep them out of the public square
British MP Jess Phillips describing the online attacks she has received from Elon Musk in recent days as “very, very, very tiring” will have struck a chord with many women.
November 5, 2024
Who is Kemi Badenoch, the first black woman to lead the UK Conservatives?
Kemi Badenoch has become the new leader of the UK Conservatives and the first black woman to lead a major political party in the UK.
October 16, 2024
Women MPs make history as London is first region ever to have majority female representation in Parliament
July 12, 2024
UK: Slow progress as women finally make up 40% of Parliament
Last week saw a change of Government and a brand-new cohort of MPs (335 new MPs) elected; but with all this churn how representative is our new House of Commons?
June 14, 2024
Female UK election candidates report increased abuse
Abuse of female election candidates is becoming worse, say candidates, activists and charities.
June 11, 2024
General Election 2024: Abuse of women in politics is denial of legitimate presence in political life
December 5, 2023
AI–4/5: On violence against women in politics, identify best practice and share it
The rapid evolution of artificial intelligence (AI) has prompted many experts to warn about its impacts on democracy. To explore this issue further, the IPU is preparing a series of articles on the topic.
November 23, 2023
#AskHerToStand is the powerful campaign encouraging women to be part of government
Whether it’s pay gaps, medical misogyny, an
November 5, 2023
Scotland: just a third of general election candidates selected so far are women
Herald on Sunday research shows that despite promises to act from most parties, just a third of all the candidates selected to fight the next general election are women.
May 11, 2023
Female Labour MP accuses shadow minister of sexual assault
A female Labour MP has reported a shadow frontbench MP to the Metropolitan police, claiming he sexually assaulted her.
April 20, 2023
Men dominate 95% of local authorities in Britain, data shows
Only 18 of 382 councils have minimum gender representation parity, say equality charities
February 21, 2023
‘It could be your next-door neighbour’: how female MPs cope with misogynistic abuse
As Nicola Sturgeon quits, online vitriol continues to leave female politicians fearing for their safety
February 16, 2023
Nicola Sturgeon to resign as First Minister, saying ‘the time is now’
Nicola Sturgeon has announced she will stand down after eight years as First Minister, telling a press confer
November 9, 2022
“Massive blind spot”: Anger at low proportion of women in Sunak’s cabinet
Women’s groups express concern as just 23% of those named to new PM’s cabinet are female.
September 9, 2022
Queen Elizabeth II, Britain's steadfast monarch, dies
Queen Elizabeth II, the world’s longest-serving head of state who led her subjects for more than seven decades, has
September 8, 2022
Liz Truss praised for diverse cabinet
First black chancellor of the exchequer among prime minister’s appointees.
September 5, 2022
Liz Truss wins Tory leadership race to become Britain’s next PM
Liz Truss will become Britain’s next prime minister after winning a resounding victory over Rishi Sunak in the bitterly fought Conservative leadership contest.
July 1, 2022
Jersey election 2022: Number of females elected rises from 14 to 21
The 2022 election has seen more women elected to Jersey's government than ever before.
A total of 51% of the newly-elected deputies are women, and women now make up 43% of the overall government.
June 9, 2022
Welsh Government to press ahead with plans to increase Senedd members
The Welsh Government is to press ahead with plans to increase the number of Senedd members despite opposition from senior Conservatives.
June 8, 2022
Nicola Sturgeon says social media abuse putting women off political career
Nicola Sturgeon has opened up about the challenges of being a woman in politics and warned social media abuse is starting to put women off.
May 30, 2022
"A proud moment for us," says Dalit body after Midha’s election; she represents the Labour Party
'A proud moment for us,' says Dalit body after Midha's election; she represents the Labour Party.
May 23, 2022
Plan unveiled to add 36 extra Senedd members
PLANS to reform Welsh politics hope to see the Senedd expanded to 96 members, with gender quotas and a shake up of constituencies with each selecting multiple members.
May 9, 2022
Record number of women MLA’s elected to Stormont
Voters in Northern Ireland have returned a record number of women to the Assembly.
Of the 90 MLAs elected to Stormont, 32 are women – an increase from 33pc in 2020 to just over 36pc.
May 5, 2022
"Some bad apples": senior Tory minister denies institutional misogyny
UK government faces growing pressure to tackle sexual misconduct in Westminster as Kwasi Kwarteng rejects idea of inherent sexism.
April 27, 2022
Women across British politics slam sexism of ‘Basic Instinct’ slur against lawmaker
LONDON (AP) — Women from across British politics called Monday for action to tackle misogyny after a newspaper ran a story accusing the deputy opposition leader of trying to “distract” the prime minister during debates by crossing and uncrossing her legs.
April 26, 2022
UK: Punish sexist MPs with suspension, says most senior woman in Commons
Basic Instinct’ attack on Angela Rayner condemned by Boris Johnson as ‘misogynistic tripe’
April 11, 2022
Only eight women stand in all-male Western Isles council elections
Officials and activists had urged more women to stand after none of the female candidates were elected in 2017.
April 7, 2022
Glasgow politician "followed" to car by councillor who "wanted to touch and hug" had to call police
Councillor Rhiannon Spear shared her experience as women from across the political parties called for an end to the 'toxic' atmosphere in politics, which causes many female councillors to step down.
March 10, 2022
Senedd must become more family-friendly, politicians say
Virtual Senedd meetings should continue long after Covid to make politics accessible to all, a politician with an eight-year-old son has said.
March 10, 2022
UK: Action needed to avoid losing a generation of women and minorities in politics, MPs argue
Action is needed to avoid losing a generation of women and minorities in politics, MPs have argued today.
March 9, 2022
Nicola Sturgeon: Gender balance in Scotland may reverse as women avoid toxic politics
Nicola Sturgeon said she fears the forthcoming council elections will see equal representation go “backwards” as women are reluctant to enter the “toxic” world of politics.
February 16, 2022
Scotland launches women’s audit to look at barriers to entering Holyrood
Exclusive: presiding officer Alison Johnstone says it will be disappointing if parliament cannot attract more female politicians.
January 21, 2022
Only two UK Covid briefings were led by a female MP, report finds
Only two of the government briefings held at the height of the coronavirus pandemic were led by a female politician, and in both cases it was the home secretary, Priti Patel, a report into gender representation across the UK’s top jobs has shows.
January 12, 2022
Brighton & Hove: politician criticises trolls abusing women in politics
A politician has called for an end to the insults that women receive on social media when they enter the political spotlight.
December 27, 2021
In Scotland, all-male council urges women to stand for election
A Scottish council which has no female councillors hopes to encourage more women to stand in next May's local government elections. In the last elections in 2017, for the first time in its history, no women were elected t