Jo Christie-Smith

I feel your frustration Jo and I agree with James....

2010-09-09T09:19:53.360+01:00

I feel your frustration Jo and I agree with James. The real problem here is that we are never going to increase the numbers of female MP's or female CEO's or stop the 20,000 women killed every year in honour killings etc etc etc, by working with women. That is not where the problem lies.

We live in a world that gives power, status and authority to men. We need to find a way to shift this context. Power will not be given up lightly and we need to be realistic about this.

What will ultimately work is when men recognise that they can let women into the realm of the public so they can add something for the benefit of all of us. And, here's the rub, women need to let men into the realm of the private, where they can add something there. We are years away from this.

See this piece for some insight into the enormity of the challenge. http://www.20-firstblog.com/?p=444

I think what really wound me up is the blatant spi...

2010-09-07T21:09:37.390+01:00

I think what really wound me up is the blatant spin of we've missed all our targets but we know what works!

It's not even spun that well!

Plus, evidence shows that mentoring on it's own has not provided diverse parliaments - what they're saying works, not only hasn't worked but it's the opposite of what has actually worked in other countries that are more successful that us.

Absolutely agree with you about the Leadership Academy - it was also in the Bones Commission, wasn't it?

Jo, The big problem with your argument is that it...

2010-09-07T20:13:25.090+01:00

Jo,

The big problem with your argument is that it is not at all clear how ANY model would have got us more women (or BME) MPs elected this time.

We lost female MPs because we lost MPs, period. That would have been true if we'd used quotas and it would have been true if we'd had a more formal 'sponsorship' programme.

You might be right and a more formal programme would be more effective (I certainly think it is a minor scandal that this "leader's academy" idea that Clegg pledged in his leadership election has been kicked into the long grass). But if we had adopted such a programme in 2005, we would now have similarly gone backwards and people would now be making very similar criticisms of it in the way you have done here.

thank you

2010-08-06T16:58:59.990+01:00

thank you

Alcoholism is the new death wish…..thats all I hav...

2010-06-25T09:52:25.690+01:00

Alcoholism is the new death wish…..thats all I have to say. we need to offer a hand to those in need of help. Help by helping others, not by ignoring the pain…

2010-05-22T13:37:46.041+01:00

This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

Fair enough. I hope you are underestimating her....

2010-05-20T11:14:39.091+01:00

Fair enough.

I hope you are underestimating her. I hope she gives the others a run for their money.

No, that's not what I'm really saying. Lo...

2010-05-20T10:55:34.378+01:00

No, that's not what I'm really saying.

Look, Diane Abbot has absolutely earnt her right to be in the leadership campaign, she is more than a black female MP.

However, I don't think it is the great win for those actually wanting more women and ethnic minority people in the very highest ranks of political parties. I worry that it will allow people to fall back into complacency.

She will make it look more diverse but the race between the front runners will still be as pale and male as it ever was.

So unless a woman or an ethnic minority candidate ...

2010-05-20T10:21:22.076+01:00

So unless a woman or an ethnic minority candidate can run as one of the front runners, they are actually doing the cause of diversity harm?

I find that point of view difficult to understand, I have to confess.

I am delighted to hear she is running. Labour wont just be able to say the race was more diverse: it will actually be more diverse. And she might do better than you think.

If she doesnt get in I dont think it will have done the cause any harm. If, well into the next parliament, the front benches are dominated by "male and pale" faces, it will be just as noticeable, regardless of whether Diane ran.

Sarah, thanks!

2010-05-13T11:29:32.698+01:00

Sarah, thanks!

Come ON, Niles! Stop kidding yourself. At some po...

2010-05-13T11:29:20.045+01:00

Come ON, Niles! Stop kidding yourself. At some point you have to stop measuring activity and start measuring results!

Candidates have no power, MPs do and that is the fact of it.

The big thing about our approach to date is that we don't have enough women coming through; we still don't have enough women come through and 6 fewer female candidates is six FEWER - it's going in the wrong direction.

This is a massive issue for us and trying to depend we did OK really but were just unlucky is going to change nothing about our democratic deficit.

Jo - love the blog,and well done on Sky News tonig...

2010-05-12T19:16:37.307+01:00

Jo - love the blog,and well done on Sky News tonight.

Sarah Fox

Hmmm. The difference between 22% and 23% is about...

2010-05-12T18:42:13.306+01:00

Hmmm. The difference between 22% and 23% is about 6 individual women. That's not hugely significant.

And what we did manage this time was getting a lot of women into winnable seats, and in the shoes of retiring men. Which is significant, and is an achievement.

It's just a shame that we weren't quite on the mark with our definition of "winnable" :(

PR is the deal breaker. Without it the LDs will lo...

2010-05-10T15:30:02.835+01:00

PR is the deal breaker. Without it the LDs will look pitifully weak.

Moreover if the talks break down on whether the public should be allowed a referendum on PR that will be the issue the next election will be fought on. The Conservatives would look intransigent, putting party before the people & virtually blackmailing the people into going for them. I think the LDs would be in a considerably stronger position after a 2nd election in such circumstances.

It will be seen as all the Tories care about is keeping an openly corrupt electoral system. I wouldn't want to be a tory trying to keep a seat then.

Note also that the Tories chose Cameron as leader not because they liked him but because they thought his moderate & green politices would increase the chance of them being elected. That being the case they aren't going to throw away the reality of power to stop PR.

It is certainly not our last chance for political ...

2010-05-10T13:14:03.182+01:00

It is certainly not our last chance for political reform. To retain our chance, we need to ensure we are in control of when the next election is called, and we maintain and build our support until then.

An election in the next few months will almost certainly be on the theme "The Liberal Democrats have caused this problem by existing, vote out all their MPs and we can get back to stable one party government". If we give the impression we also can't handle the multi-party politics our existence causes, I suspect the electorate will warm to this theme.

We may be very keen on electoral reform, but we MUST be aware that to most of the electorate even if they agree with it, they don't see it as a priority. In the current situation, it would have given us more negotiating power, but still much the same dilemma we are in. So I just can't see why so many people are jumping up and down and and saying that electoral reform would not have led to what we are in now. The main thing shown by the election result is that the current electoral system is not guaranteed to deliver a single party majority.

So, if we give the message that all we care about is electoral reform, to us that may appear a greatly principled stand, to most of the country it will come across as "all they care about is changing the system to give them more power". I.e. typical politicians, only in it for themselves.

It is for this reason that I came to see, in the early hours of Friday morning, that the only realistic line for us now is to agree on supply and confidence to a Tory government. We must make absolutely clear we would let them continue for say two years, so that if they did call a general election in months, they get the blame for it, we say "the people spoke, you would not accept it, how dare you ask them to think again because you didn't like what they said?".

We must also be absolutely clear that our line is this for the stability of the country, because there just aren't enough non-Tory MPs to make a stable alternative, because the people need to see what a Cameron government looks like when it has to deliver its promises, and because anyone who supports the two-party system should accept that under that system, the Conservatives won. I.e., don't blame us, blame Labour for supporting that system, it has just worked as the Labservatives want it to - distortion in favour of whichever of them is the largest.

Once the people have had plenty of time to see what a Cameron government looks like, give it two years, they will be WELL prepared to vote it out. I am sure we shall find reason about then to table a motion of no confidence. Then we get our next chance, and it will be a better one. By then, Labour should be on our side over electoral reform, and with a leader other than Brown. Then, not now, is the time to make deals with them.

It's about time the government recognised that...

2010-03-09T11:07:25.973Z

It's about time the government recognised that Every Mother is a Working Mother! If you want to keep celebrating IWD and Mothers Day in one fell swoop, join the Mothers March & Speak Out on Saturday 13 March at 2pm Trafalgar Square and then to Parliament Square. Bringing together mothers of every race, age, passport, income, sexuality and occupation to demand recognition and support for all the work we contribute to society. Fathers and other carers who support mothers very welcome. Details on www.globalwomenstrike.net
By the way, how do we send you stuff you might want to blog about?? Do you have an email we can mail to please?

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2010-02-17T00:33:02.367Z

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2010-02-16T17:29:45.028Z

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2010-01-15T12:55:57.938Z

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tristan seriously? Children don't get a seat?...

2010-01-09T20:47:08.900Z

tristan seriously? Children don't get a seat? Whyever not? They'll usually be WAY more comfortable and pleasant sitting in a space of their own, and thus less loud. A marginal decrease in yelling is I'm sure more pleasant to the rest of the passengers than losing one seat.

I actually don't notice this specific thing much. What I personally experience more is large people encroaching on my seat because they are heavy and the seat wasn't built big enough. It's not like I can get mad about that since it isn't their fault but it *is* super annoying.

i think you are sick in your mind somehow by think...

2009-12-28T01:24:57.076Z

i think you are sick in your mind somehow by thinking that your way is the right way though you always judge without going into any details of the theme .i do not think SHaria is good and i do not think you are right ,we give love to women not like modern world who they have no love and emotion because of civilization .
Hassan

I think the adverts are a disgrace. Every single o...

2009-12-16T14:06:39.637Z

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2009-10-22T20:34:15.501+01:00

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Jo Christie-Smith

I feel your frustration Jo and I agree with James....

I think what really wound me up is the blatant spi...

Jo, The big problem with your argument is that it...

thank you

Alcoholism is the new death wish…..thats all I hav...

Fair enough. I hope you are underestimating her....

No, that's not what I'm really saying. Lo...

So unless a woman or an ethnic minority candidate ...

Sarah, thanks!

Come ON, Niles! Stop kidding yourself. At some po...

Jo - love the blog,and well done on Sky News tonig...

Hmmm. The difference between 22% and 23% is about...

PR is the deal breaker. Without it the LDs will lo...

It is certainly not our last chance for political ...

It's about time the government recognised that...

it is intresting

I really like this blog, you are very good making ...

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tristan seriously? Children don't get a seat?...

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