Today I wrote to the women’s officers of constituency Labour parties to remind them about the importance of the work of Labour MEPs and the Labour government in achieving political decisions that reflect the needs of all of our society.
Labour is the party that has championed equal representation in politics and beyond and we should be proud of our record of electing female MPs. What’s more, eight of our 19 MEPs are women, compared to just one lone female Conservative MEP. And UKIP, as you may know, haven’t got a woman amongst them.
This lack of female representation has a real impact on the decisions they take on our behalf. In Europe the Tories are not representative of women and their voting performance proves it. I’ve watched them fail to support a zero-tolerance approach to tackle violence against women. They even failed to vote to make rape within marriage a criminal offence and they failed to vote to end female genital mutilation.
Our policies, driven by our values, are to stand up for equality. At home and in Europe Labour has taken action to help women. It was the Labour government that signed Britain up to the Social Chapter in Europe which extended maternity leave for women, introduced paternity leave and gave a new right to request flexible working. Labour MEPs have also championed additional rights for temporary and agency workers, benefiting men and women and secured action in Europe to combat violence and discrimination against women.
And at home we have delivered free cervical cancer screening on the NHS for women over 25, improved childcare provision through Sure Start and published the Equality Bill calling for gender pay reporting because we are committed to tackling the gender pay gap. But we know there is more to be done. We need Labour MEPs to drive women’s rights forward and that is why I am asking for your vote on 4 June.
We know that the Tories can’t be trusted on equality. They have opposed many of our measures which help low paid women most, like the national minimum wage and tax credits. In Europe their pledge to withdraw from the Social Chapter would threaten the rights that Labour secured to help women and families.
That’s Labour values in action, at home and in Europe, and I hope I can count on your support in the campaign for 4 June.
Glenis Willmott MEP is Labour’s leader in Europe