Women’s Contribution to the Economy

Helen Grant Excerpts

Thursday 6th March 2014 Westminster Hall

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Women and Equalities (Mrs Helen Grant)]

It is a great pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Sheridan. I congratulate my right hon. Friend the Member for Meriden (Mrs Spelman) and the hon. Member for Slough (Fiona Mactaggart) on securing this very important debate. Both are passionate advocates of this agenda; in fact, the pair of them are fantastic role models in their own right.

I pay tribute to all hon. Members who have spoken. They have made excellent contributions. We have had speeches from my right hon. Friend the Member for Meriden, the hon. Member for Slough, my hon. Friends the Members for Mid Derbyshire (Pauline Latham) and for Suffolk Coastal (Dr Coffey) and the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for Washington and Sunderland West (Mrs Hodgson). They have made important contributions, but there have also been important interventions. We have heard not only from the many extraordinary women in this place, but from many enlightened men who recognise how critical the issues are. I am pleased to respond to the debate on behalf of a Government who are wholeheartedly committed to the cause. I want to summarise what the Government are doing, but I will do my best to respond to some of the many interventions and requests for clarification.

Today’s debate has given us a chance to reflect on and celebrate the enormous progress that has been made in this country, towards equality for women in the workplace, and in women’s contribution to the economy—progress that the generations before us could only imagine. I want to focus on two main areas: the growing importance of women in the economic recovery, and the need to shape our workplaces to enable women to be full participants, including the measures that the Government are taking to achieve that important transformation. I hope to continue the non-partisan tone of the debate. There is broad agreement on the issues across all parties, and we can all celebrate the increasing success of women in the economy. We should work closely together, not against each other, on that.

Securing economic recovery remains the most urgent task facing the Government. The evidence shows that the Government’s long-term economic plan is working, but, as the Chancellor said, the recovery is not yet secure. There is still much more to do, but we can take encouragement from the positive signs. My right hon. Friend the Member for Meriden and the hon. Member for Slough both mentioned that there are now 14 million women working. As well as being the highest number since records began that also represents the highest employment rate, and it is quite an achievement. Of course there is more to do, but there are 500,000 more women in work than there were when the Government took office. The pace of change is also quickening. Women’s employment increased by 93,000 on the quarter, and is now 199,000 higher than it was a year ago. I am also heartened that many more women see self-employment and enterprise as a viable option. There are 175,000 more women in self-employment than there were in May 2010, and we know for example that a third of beneficiaries of the Government’s StartUp loan programme are women. That is excellent news for women and for the health and competitiveness of the economy.

There is still, however, more we can do to help women to progress in the workplace and in business, which brings me to my second theme—shaping our workplaces to enable women to be full participants. In many ways, our workplaces have been transformed in recent decades. A key feature of that transformation has been the rising number of women in work and increasingly in senior roles across the whole economy. Thankfully, the rules are changing. Flexible working is no longer seen as a necessary evil to accommodate women with caring responsibilities. It is now rightly seen by leading businesses as good practice, which enables not just women, but all of us who require some flexibility in our increasingly busy lives, to make a full and proper contribution at work. Therefore, from June, we will extend the right to request flexible working to all employees, to continue driving that culture change across business, to the point where there is no longer the concept of full-time or part-time working—just the concept of working.

Extending to all the right to request flexible working will also help to challenge the unfair stigma that those that need to work flexibly are somehow less committed to their employer. Through the introduction of shared parental leave next year we are also working to end the assumption—another stigma, in my opinion—that women will be the main carer of a child; we will also be allowing fathers to play a bigger part in the first year of their children’s lives. That will help families to juggle their home and work life, and it will also lessen the negative impact on careers of time spent out of the workplace. The hon. Member for Slough pointed out that flexible working and shared parental leave should help families to balance their busy lives. She focused in her speech on the contribution made by women aged over 50, and I am sure that she will be pleased that the Women’s Business Council flagged up in its conclusions the “tremendous untapped potential” of women

“in the third phase of their working lives”.

The council has put out a marker, which is exciting; I look forward to working closely with it and others to develop that potential.

I am pleased to confirm that from October next year we will introduce tax-free child care, which will save working families up to £1,200 per child. Those are important and necessary changes, which will directly address issues that women face in the workplace, but we also need to tackle the cultures and attitudes that often prevent women from the reaching the top. Through our continuing work with Lord Davies and the business community, we will ensure that more talented women take their rightful place in the boardroom and, once there, provide a better balance of views and experience to ensure that businesses maximise their potential.

[Sarah Newton]

Did the Minister read the report produced by the Select Committee on Science and Technology following our inquiry into the number of women in senior positions in science—particularly universities? I think that she will find our recommendations helpful in getting women scientists and engineers to play their full part in the economy.

[Mrs Grant]

That is an important point. There never seem to be enough hours in the day, somehow, but I promise to look at the report and talk to my hon. Friend about its conclusions.

Since Lord Davies reported in February 2011, there have been unprecedented changes in the composition of boardrooms. Women now make up 20.4% of the directors of FTSE100 companies, which is up from 12.5%, and there are now just two all-male FTSE100 boards; that figure is down from 21. Again, that is great news for the economy, but it is vital that we maintain the momentum. We need just 51 more women on FTSE100 boards by 2015 to achieve the 25% target set by Lord Davies.

The pay gap is an important issue. I do not think that it has been raised directly in today’s debate, but it is never too far from my mind. It is a matter of concern that women are still disadvantaged in pay. We are addressing that in two main ways. First, for the vast majority of businesses who want to do the right thing by their female employees, we are encouraging good practice through the voluntary “Think, Act, Report” initiative. More than 170 organisations representing more than 2 million employees are showing that they are committed to equality in their business. As the Minister responsible for tourism I was pleased to announce this morning at a Women 1st women in tourism event that Merlin Entertainments, Brakes Group, easyJet, Advantage Travel and CH&Co catering have now signed up to that important initiative.

However, we shall also take tough action against employers who do not do the right thing, and from October when a tribunal finds that an employer has broken equal pay laws it will order a full pay audit, to prevent continuing sex discrimination in pay matters.

[Fiona Mactaggart]

One of the things that my constituents say to me is that because they cannot get legal aid and proper support for tribunals, they are less likely to take such cases to a tribunal. A policy that triggers action against a company only after a successful tribunal claim has been made is likely to be less effective in future than it would have been in the past.

[Mrs Grant]

The hon. Lady has raised that issue before, and I know that she is concerned about it. As she knows, there is a remission system, so when people do not have the money to pay the fee, the state will step in. That remission system has been around for some years, and it has worked very well. I trust that it will continue to work well to ensure that people have access to justice, a concept that is very important to me and to others.

[Mrs Hodgson]

I want to point out that I raised the question of the gender pay gap. I mentioned that in 2012-13, the gender pay gap for full-time workers rose for the first time in five years to 10%. I have listened to the Minister telling us about the measures that the Government will take, but will she give us an assurance that the gender gap will not increase further during her term of office?

[Mrs Grant]

I apologise to the shadow Minister for not mentioning the fact that she had raised the gender pay gap; I, of course, heard her. It is an important issue, and I think we are making progress. The overall gender pay gap still stands at just under 20%, which in my opinion is completely unacceptable, but I believe that the two measures that we are taking—one of scrutiny in relation to compulsory pay audits and the other about transparency through “Think, Act, Report”—will have the desired effect.

A number of interventions have been made by hon. Members today. I am not sure whether I will be able to deal with all of them, but I will do my best. My right hon. Friend the Member for Meriden raised the geographic disparity in women’s employment rates and suggested that cultural factors might be partly responsible. There are a number of factors at play, and cultural heritage may well be one of them. We want to help all girls and women to fulfil their potential, and we have a programme of work for that purpose to raise girls’ aspirations, which includes a school and business partnership and a resource for parents to help them support their daughters with their career choices. A number of excellent organisations are helping us, including QED-UK, a project that supports women of Pakistani heritage into employment in south Yorkshire, which is making excellent progress.

The hon. Member for Slough asked whether I would discuss with the Department for Education the issue of young girls receiving advertisements for jobs ancillary to sex work. I am appalled that young women are receiving adverts for jobs ancillary to adult entertainment, and I will certainly raise that issue with my ministerial colleagues.

The hon. Lady and my hon. Friend the Member for Suffolk Coastal spoke in detail and with great authority about women on boards. I share their concern that where women are getting board roles, they are more likely to be successful in non-executive roles. If we are to make real and proper progress in that area, it is essential that we focus on developing the executive pipeline. I would like to acknowledge the excellent work of an organisation called Women 1st, to which I gave a keynote speech this morning, which is trailblazing in this area. I look forward to hosting and chairing an event involving head-hunters in the next few weeks with my hon. Friend the Member for Suffolk Coastal and others.

The hon. Member for Solihull (Lorely Burt), who is no longer in her seat, remarked on the poor showing of the UK, in comparison with the United States, on enterprise. If she were here, I would be saying to her that the Women’s Business Council is prioritising women’s entrepreneurship. At a meeting yesterday, members of the council discussed what they could do as leaders in industry, and they discussed issues such as positive role models and positive behaviours. The council is determined to make further progress in that area.

My hon. Friend the Member for Suffolk Coastal spoke in detail about science, technology, engineering and maths, about which she knows an awful lot. I agree with her that we need to encourage more girls to study STEM subjects and raise their aspirations. That topic will be discussed at the United Nations next week, at the Commission on the Status of Women. I am happy to say that the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Basingstoke (Maria Miller), and Nicola Yates, a Women’s Business Council member from GlaxoSmithKline, will be advocating on behalf of the UK the need to support girls into those disciplines and sharing best practice with a truly international audience.

One of our enlightened men—unfortunately he is no longer in his place—my hon. Friend the Member for Finchley and Golders Green (Mike Freer), raised the need to get our girls to do A-level maths, which is an important issue. Action is being taken, and £200 million of Government investment has gone into STEM higher education teaching facilities, and higher education institutions will be required to match funding. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills is also funding a programme of work to promote diversity in the STEM work force.

My hon. Friend the Member for South Basildon and East Thurrock (Stephen Metcalfe), who has left the room, spoke about men as agents for change. We need to have the men with us on this agenda if we are to make progress. I always say that when courageous women meet with enlightened men, there is very little that they cannot achieve. I am pleased that he made that contribution. On 20 February, John Timpson of the Women’s Business Council hosted a round-table meeting with male CEOs to develop strategies to support flexible and modern workplaces. It is important for male leaders to demonstrate leadership in that area, and their doing so shows commitment and best practice.

The shadow Minister and the hon. Member for Slough raised the issue of women and public appointments, especially in Whitehall. The Government are absolutely committed to increasing the diversity of public appointments, and we have recently established a centre for public appointments, which works right across Whitehall and with executive search industries to modernise the recruitment practices to public boards. The Government’s aim, which the shadow Minister may be aware of, is for 50% of new public appointments to be women by the end of the Parliament, and we have recently published an action plan for achieving that. We are making progress; 37% of public appointments made by Whitehall Departments in 2012-13 were women, and that has risen to 45% in the past six months.

[Fiona Mactaggart]

Will the Minister give way?

[Mrs Grant]

If I can just finish my point. The hon. Member for Slough asked how many of the appointments were paid; I do not know, but I would be happy to look into that and write to her in due course. If that is the issue she wanted to raise, I hope that I can push on; if not, I will sit down.

[Fiona Mactaggart]

It is the issue I was going to raise, and I am grateful to the Minister for her offer to write to me. However, I wish I could get a reply to the question that I have asked every Department. I just want the number of appointments that are paid to be in the public domain. We do not currently know, and that information ought to be published. If the Minister could make that happen, I would be very grateful.

[Mrs Grant]

I shall do my very best to provide the hon. Lady with the information she has requested. I would also be happy to meet her if she needs further information once she has received what I will endeavour to send to her.

[Mrs Hodgson]

I raised the issue of departmental boards. They are obviously not representative, and I know that the Minister has said that that will be addressed, but are departmental board positions paid or unpaid?

[Mrs Grant]

May I write to the hon. Lady on that, just as I will write to the hon. Member for Slough?

This has been a wide-ranging and informative debate. It is also a critical debate for our society and economy. I would like to conclude with a reminder of some of the findings of the Women’s Business Council, which reported last June and continues to work with the Government and business to drive forward this important agenda. It found that by equalising the labour force participation of men and women, the UK could increase economic growth by 0.5% per year, with potential gains of 10% of GDP by 2030. It also found that if women were setting up and running new businesses at the same rate as men, we could have an extra 1 million female entrepreneurs.

As the Prime Minister repeatedly says, we are now in a global race, and, as those figures from the Women’s Business Council show, it is a race that we cannot win unless we make full use of the skills and experience of everyone in our economy. I hope I have made it clear that this Government will do whatever it takes to ensure that we support women in the economy, and to transform the world of work so that many more women have the opportunity to achieve their aspirations.