Labour ‘cannot rest on laurels’ on diversity in Parliament, says Commons leader

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Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

Labour must not “rest on our laurels” on diversity in Parliament, one of the party’s front benchers has said ahead of its annual women’s conference on Saturday.

Commons Leader Lucy Powell hailed the 2024 election as a landmark for women’s representation, returning both the highest number and highest proportion of female MPs in history.

Some 263 women were elected to Parliament in July, 40% of all MPs, with 190 of them being Labour MPs.

The numbers of ethnic minority and openly LGBT MPs are also at record levels for the start of a Parliament.

Ms Powell said: “This Parliament is our most diverse ever, in large part down to the huge number of Labour MPs who were elected. Our first women’s conference under a Labour Government in 15 years is a moment to celebrate.

“But we can’t rest on our laurels. If we are to restore trust in politics, we need a Parliament which properly reflects the country we serve.”

Ms Powell went on to say more needed to be done to address concerns about the safety of MPs and make Parliament’s working environment more family friendly.

She said: “While getting elected is the first step, we know that many women leave politics because of the culture, the work-life balance and because they fear for their safety.

“Through the newly established Modernisation Committee, this Government will drive through changes to our politics to drive up standards, improve working practices and making the House of Commons an accessible and inclusive place to work, looking at how the House of Commons can be more family friendly, inclusive and open to all.”

Chaired by Ms Powell, the new Modernisation Committee announced plans earlier this month to focus on improving Parliament’s culture and addressing issues of bullying and harassment.

Female MPs make up 46% of the Parliamentary Labour Party after July’s election, while the 29 female Conservative MPs amount to 24% of Tories in Parliament.

The Liberal Democrats have 32 female MPs, 44% of the party’s total.

Although the number of women Labour MPs has increased steadily since the 1990s, the party has never had a female leader.

On Thursday, Sir Keir Starmer told broadcasters he hoped the party had a woman leader in future.

He said: “Do we need a female leader of the Labour Party? You bet we do. And, you know, I hope that that happens.”