Gosport MP pays tribute to female councillors

MP CAROLINE Dinenage has paid tribute to female councillors in a parliament debate.

The Gosport politician, who is minister for women and equalities, praised the fact that nearly half the councillors in the town are women.

She was speaking at the debate which marked 150 years since philosopher MP John Mill moved the first mass petition to the House of Commons on behalf of women claiming their right to vote.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The debate focused on the political representation of women.

Ms Dinenage said: ‘I am delighted that, in my local council of Gosport, nearly 40 per cent of our councillors are female and I pay tribute to every single one of them.’

Thirteen out of 34 councillors in Gosport are women, meaning the number of female councillors has nearly doubled since 2012 when only seven held office.

Nationally, the 2015 general election saw a 30 per cent increase in the number of female MPs. However the number of women to ever be elected as an MP is still lower than the number of male MPs holding office today.

Ms Dinenage added: ‘We need to keep up the fight, we need to talk about the issues that matter to us, we need to encourage the women around us to get politically engaged.’