Willie Rennie doesn’t have a fancy video, but he this is his message for International Women’s Day.
Liberals across the world are driven by an ambition to see a fairer, more equal society. The bedrock of which must be equality of opportunity.
I’m proud that Liberal Democrats have used the responsibility of Government to drive our ambition of equality even further forward. Shared parental leave, free childcare and flexible working are all measures taken forward by Liberal Democrats which will enable more women to have the equality of opportunity they need to get on in life.
But we still have much more we need to do. That is why Liberal Democrats have led efforts to end FGM, where millions of women are still at risk across the world. We want to end FGM within a generation.
We can be proud that in Holyrood, the leadership of our political parties better reflect our society. But I take a personal responsibility in ensuring my party does all that it can to remove the barriers which prevent women from representing their peers in parliament. I hope that this is a personal responsibility of all leaders, be they party leaders or business leaders.
My colleague Alison McInnes has led calls to the Scottish Government to end its glacial pace of reform in ensuring equal representation on the boards of Scotland’s public bodies. And in STEM subjects, much more must be done if we are to end the unacceptable situation whereby three quarters of women with science, technology, engineering or mathematics qualifications do not work in the STEM industries.
On International Women’s Day, we can all reflect on our personal responsibility to challenge inequality and to create equality of opportunity. This year’s theme is make it happen.
The persistent inequality between genders must be addressed by tackling gender stereotypes, boosting childcare and ensuring equal representation in our boardrooms. Liberal Democrats want to make this happen.
One Comment
I expect the women of the world were sitting on the edge of their seats just waiting for a message from Willie Rennie.
His ringing declaration that “..I’m proud that Liberal Democrats have used the responsibility of Government etc etc ” in this context seems a bit empty especially when one considers the dismal record of appointing no women to Cabinet jobs.
In modern times the only party leader who has failed to appoint a single woman to the Cabinet is Nick Clegg.
He really has been unique when it came to putting into practice fine words about women and equality.