'Diversity of decision making is vital' - Farris

Newbury MP Laura Farris says diversity of decision making is vital to good government.

Mrs Farris said: “I think representation matters and although a third of MPs are women that has only changed in the last 15 years. For most of history all the big government decisions have been made by a certain class of men. Diversity of decision making is vital to good government.

“As with all representation, it can be quite powerful for women to see other women raise issues that they have experience of.”

She says the threats and the violence - obviously not just directed at women - has an effect on people getting involved too.

“The Jo Cox killing has a big effect on women’s appetite for politics,” she added.

Labour MP Mrs Cox was murdered on her way to her surgery in 2016.

“We have a Met Police detail in parliament who use software to monitor all the social media posts and email we get," Mrs Farris explained. "Early on the head of that operation told me that women get four times more abuse than the men.

"That is played out in my experience when I compare to male colleagues.

“There is a certain way that people will speak to you, particularly on social media which is much more disrespectful than if you were male.”

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She says she hasn’t seen poor behaviours from male colleagues in public office and believes a key blocker to women entering politics is the strain on family life.

“It’s not just the hours but the intensity and the scrutiny," she added. "Historically, going back 30, 40 years you would have a male MP with a wife who was probably at home, devoted to being the supportive spouse.”