I have joined as a founding member and contributed to policy in the parenting issue. I did so because I believe that any political party speaking for women cannot speak for all women if the validity of mothers wishing to take time out of the workforce to care for their families is not taken on board. No political party is representing those women. Not one. It is important that WEP does so. I have argued for care to be more valued, for the issue of care provided by a parent rather than commercial provider to be adequately supported and much more. I am a writer, blogger, former lawyer and law reporter and I have been politically active and interested from a young age when taken on marches by my trade union activist and labour party parents. I wrote a political pamphlet on the issue of mothers, which has been distributed far and wide online and which has been sent to MPs of the main parties and policymakers. The failure of society to value women when what they do is mothering is one of the most neglected feminist issues we face. I will be speaking about this issue at the Feminism in London Conference in October. I will also be addressing Global Women Strike's Conference. I ask that WEP does not become WEEP - Women Employees Equality Party. I ask that the party take a radical view, pushing for the reshaping of what we value, how we support mothers on reentry to the workplace at the time that suits her (pay to match what she would have received without time out/ pension rights readjusted to compensate for the work she did when she cared for her own children/ reinstatement and increase in child benefit / rebalancing the tax system so that single earner families are not taxed thousands more for the same income received by dual earners but split / ensuring that no woman is rendered at the mercy of a partner simply by virtue of her wishing to care for her children / pursuing the funding of retraining for mothers seeking to reenter the workforce... There is so much out there - so much neglected by mainstream political parties - and a wealth of feminist literature, academic work and popular work about motherwork, feminist economics and the ethic of care. A woman's place is wherever she wants to be. That must be honoured - and to support only the idea of equality as 'the same' or '50/50 split work/home' is not what all women want at all times of their lives. A mother's place must be where she wants to be. Make that happen. I look forward to working with you to make that happen. I blog on HuffPost (Vanessa Olorenshaw), twitter @VOlorenshaw, and blog on https://politicsofmothering.wordpress.com/ My pamphlet Politics of Mothering is available on amazon or for free in PDF download from my blog. I am currently writing a book, for which I have a publisher. I have included references to my experiences in the WEP so far, and the struggle to get care by mothers heard, recognised, valued and respected. I am highly passionate about women's rights. I am a feminist. I want to promote this party, work with this party and support the fight for fairness and justice for women. Equality is just the first step.