UK voters want to see Women’s Equality Party in Parliament

Published 11 August 2017

UK voters want to see the Women’s Equality Party take up 12 seats in the House of Commons, according to new YouGov data which plots out the public’s ‘ideal’ Parliament.

YouGov asked more than 5,000 voters to choose how they would allocate the 631 seats in the House of Commons (excluding the Speaker and Northern Irish seats) to create their ‘ideal’ chamber.

On average, the Women’s Equality Party was allocated 12 seats out of 631 – 2 per cent of the total – with support for the party remaining strong right across the UK.

“This clearly shows an appetite among voters from all walks of life to prioritise gender equality through political representation in Westminster,” said Sophie Walker, leader of the Women’s Equality Party.

“It is also really encouraging to see that, among young people, there is an even greater desire to see our party take up space in our Parliament. Young women and men want to see an end to the ingrained inequalities around parenting, pay and education that hold all of us back. Similarly, those of a lower socio-economic demographic are even more keen to see us win seats. They, and WE, are ready for change.”

The ideal House of Commons had 223 Labour seats and 215 Conservative seats, with the Liberal Democrats taking 56, the SNP taking 29, the Greens taking 33 and UKIP taking 29.

Among female voters, the allocation of seats to the Women’s Equality Party rose to 18. The party was also the only one to gain equal support from both Brexiters and Remainers.

“It is unsurprising that women are so keen to see us in Westminster, when so many of their needs fail to be prioritised by the old parties,” said Walker. “The summer Parliamentary recess has seen the news dominated by stories of unequal pay, epidemic rates of sexual harassment and assault – even in our schools – and more pension misery for older women. We will continue to tackle these issues and fight for women’s rights until the House of Commons is one day truly an ideal place for our democracy.”