Women: Rights

Baroness Williams of Crosby Excerpts

Tuesday 4th June 2013 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes]

My Lords—

[Baroness Williams of Crosby]

My Lords—

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes]

Is the Minister aware that this country was one of the first to pass an equal opportunities Act, but it was a long, slow process to move on from there to change the culture and attitudes not only in this country but world wide? Female genital mutilation is an example. Does she not think that progress is being made?

--- Later in debate ---

[Baroness Northover]

That sounds like a very good idea. Given that the noble Lord taught me history, perhaps he will take it forward.

[Baroness Williams of Crosby]

My Lords, I thank my noble friend and the noble Baroness, Lady Hayter, for their spirited responses in this brief discussion. I want to ask about one area where, sadly, the move towards equality has been extremely slow—the finance sector. Perhaps my noble friend can say something about what steps are being taken and how successful they are in increasing the proportion of women on the boards of major banks and other finance-sector companies.

[Baroness Northover]

We are pushing very hard to increase that. I note that the number of boards in the FTSE 100 that have no women on them has fallen to six, down from 21 in 2011. We are acutely aware of this.