Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Candidate Diversity: Democratic Process

Wednesday 25 October 2023 · 4 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 3 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Rosie Duffield raised concerns about underrepresentation of disabled people and ethnic minorities in political candidacy.
  • Theresa Villiers inquired about encouraging the British-Albanian community to be more involved in elections and campaigning.
  • Yasmin Qureshi highlighted the Labour party's commitment to enacting section 106 of the Equality Act to ensure political party diversity.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Rosie Duffield Ind Canterbury
Women & Equalities
Context

The question arises from concerns about the lack of diverse representation among parliamentary candidates.

Question

I am concerned that despite efforts, there remains a significant underrepresentation of disabled people and ethnic minorities in political candidacy. With nearly 25% of the UK population registered as disabled, do you agree that all parties should focus on selecting more diverse groups of candidates for the upcoming election?

Answer from Kemi Badenoch

The hon. Lady asks an excellent question, and I thank her for all the work she does campaigning for women's rights. She has been at the vanguard of some contentious issues. She is quite right to raise candidate selection. All political parties have to make the very best of efforts in ensuring that a meritocracy exists and helping those including disabled people who might need additional assistance in participating through some of the difficult selection processes.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific ask about reducing nepotism was not directly addressed.

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Q2 Theresa Villiers Con
Democracy & Elections
Context

There is a growing British-Albanian community in Theresa Villiers' constituency that contributes positively to both culture and economy.

Question

I have a thriving British-Albanian community in my Chipping Barnet constituency, making a really positive contribution to our culture and economy. What more can the Government do to encourage them to be involved in campaigning at elections, voting in elections and standing as candidates in elections?

Answer from Kemi Badenoch

I welcome my right hon. Friend's efforts in ensuring that everyone participates in the democratic process. I agree with her, but it is ultimately for local registration teams to ensure as best they can that all eligible electors in their area are correctly registered to vote.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific ask about encouraging British-Albanian community involvement was not directly addressed.

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Q3 Rosie Duffield Ind Canterbury
Women & Equalities Standards & Ethics
Context

Concerns about underrepresentation of certain groups in the political candidacy.

Question

With almost a quarter of the UK's population registered as disabled, does the Minister agree that all political parties need to try harder in the run-up to the next general election in selecting a diverse group of candidates, with perhaps slightly less emphasis on nepotism and more on the representation of ordinary voters, including those from all ethnic minority backgrounds?

Answer from Kemi Badenoch

The hon. Lady asks an excellent question, and I thank her for all the work she does campaigning for women's rights. She has been at the vanguard of some contentious issues. She is quite right to raise candidate selection. All political parties have to make the very best of efforts in ensuring that a meritocracy exists and helping those including disabled people who might need additional assistance in participating through some of the difficult selection processes.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific ask about reducing nepotism was not directly addressed.

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Q4 Yasmin Qureshi Lab Bolton South and Walkden
Women & Equalities
Context

Labour party has more women and ethnic minority MPs than other parties combined, promoting better outcomes for British people.

Question

The Labour party has more women and ethnic minority MPs than the rest of the political parties put together. We know that leads to better outcomes for British people, but there is always further to go. That is why we have committed to enacting section 106 of the Equality Act so that all political parties would be required to be transparent about the diversity of their candidates. Why will the Government not do the same?

Answer from Kemi Badenoch

At the end of the day, it is the electorate who decide who gets to represent them. The hon. Member might be cherry-picking statistics on which party is the most diverse. We can do the same and talk about how the Conservatives have had three female Prime Ministers when Labour has not had even a single leader. If she wants to dive deep down and be granular, we have more black men in our party than in all the other parties combined.

Not addressed: The specific ask about enacting section 106 of the Equality Act was not addressed.

How: Cherry-Picking Statistics, Comparing With Labour

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