90 years ago today

NOT A DAY LONGER

Say 'No' to 42 days: Sign Amnesty's petition against extending pre-charge detention

What do we do now?: Anthony Barnett assesses the stakes for for liberals and radicals in David Davis's campaign against the erosion of rights and liberties

The Abundance of Caution: an authoritative essay by Anthony Barnett sets out the case against 42 Days

Sortition and public policy

A major new series from Imprint Academic on the use of randomisation in education, politics and other public policy areas. Special discount prices for OurKingdom and openDemocracy readers.

Labour After Brown

The next left -Life after the Labour Party: Gerry Hassan sees a historic opportunity for the emergence of a post-New Labour left.

Scottish Labour, where's the coffee?: Gerry Hassan assesses the prospects for Scottish Labour and its new leader.

Lesson for the Left from Chile to Britain: Hassan Akram offers a global perspective on Labour's malaise.

From Milibland to Johnson land?: Jeremy Gilbert argues for Labour without neo-liberalism.

Magical thinking on Britishness: Anthony Barnett critiques Liam Byrne on fraternity.

Rule of law at risk: Geoffrey Bindman calls for a turn away from the marketisation of government.

A new Bill of Rights for Britain?: Guy Aitchison analyses Parliament's proposed new Bill of Rights.

Miliband - by our rights we will know you: Claire O'Brien puts forward a new progressive vision for Labour.

Recapturing liberal Britain: David Marquand challenges Labour's constitutional orthodoxy.

Miliband and the Liberal Democrats: James Graham on the case for realignment.

What is Labour's British story?: Writing from Scotland, Gerry Hassan widens the OurKingdom debate on Labour's future.

This is not Brown's crisis but Britain's: David Marquand says social democracy is bust and Britain may be too.

The Challenges for Miliband's Progressive Fusion: Fabian Society head Sunder Katwala responds to David Miliband.

America Votes, Europe Responds: Fabian Society conference on the US election result, Westminster Central Hall, 10am to 4pm, Saturday 8th November.

Visit the new Fabian Society blog: Next Left

England Awakes?

England, Britain and multiculturalism: an OurKingdom exchange

A mild awakening?, England's turn? by David Goodhart

openDemocracy

OurKingdom Tags

Wales Uncategorized Scotland Parliament Northern Ireland Media Local democracy Labour Party Gordon Brown EU England Devolution Detention without charge Conservative Party Brown's reforms Britishness

Navigation

| | | | | | | |

6 - 02 - 2008

Jon Bright (London, OK): Today is the 90th anniversary of women first winning the right to vote in the UK. This is from Katherine Rake at the Fawcett Society:

Ninety years ago on Wednesday (6 February 2008) one of the most important steps to women’s enfranchisement was secured with the legal right to vote. Yet nine decades later we find that women’s full enfranchisement has not been achieved

Even 90 years after the fact, women are still woefully under represented in political institutions, making up, for example, only 20% of MPs in Westminster. This is a perfect illustration of how much more there is going on determining access to power in our country - entrenched interests, prejudices, nepotisms and traditions - than the simple majoritarian voting system which crops up every four or five years or so, and which is often referred to affectionately as "democracy."

Inequalities like this are a way of making the arguments of democratic reformers tangible, and of highlighting why it is the structure of power in our country - not which party currently sits on top - that we should pay most attention to if we would like to achieve real change. I hope that in another 90 years we are able to celebrate the equal access of men and women to positions of power, whilst also celebrating the anniversary of when change first began. Sadly, even today, this is a hope rather than a certainty.

OurKingdom's blog | email this blogpdf version | quote

Post new comment

In Pictures

Just Posted

Just Commented

Email Alerts

Fill in the form below to sign up to our automatic daily alerts, or weekly editorial summary (you will be taken to another page to confirm which options you want).

OK is reading

They say about OK

"the ever-stimulating OpenDemocracy"
Ekklesia

"See OurKingdom to keep up"
South Belfast Diary

"...an essential guide to understanding the dynamic constitutional situation..."
Peter Oborne

"...becoming a daily read for me."
Iain Dale

"To make sense of it all, check out OurKingdom..."
Matthew d'Ancona

"Worth a look...it is, however, recommended by Matthew d'Ancona."
The Wardman Wire

"Fast becoming the best political website around"
Tom Waterhouse, CEP

"...attracting energy from a range of contributors."
thenextwave

"...looks very promising..."
The England Project

"The excellent new OurKingdom blog from OpenDemocracy..."
The Green Ribbon

"On the internet, I keep in touch with openDemocracy, a website on global current affairs, and its useful offshoot, OurKingdom"
Andreas Whittam-Smith

"thanks to the fine folk at OurKingdom, (who manage to communicate a variety of perspectives in the way that only a decent group blog can)"
Nostalgia For the Future