Gender Equality Gap 'Must 'Be Fought'

Labour leadership contender Ken Macintosh is calling for a political fund to be established to encourage greater female participation in politics.

He has spoken out on gender inequality, saying his party must lead the fight to reverse the gap between women in work, politics and society. He's calling for a political fund to be established to encourage greater female participation.

He said: "It is Labour's duty to lead the fight and reverse the growing gap between men and women in our workplace, our society and in our politics too.
 
"As Scottish Labour Leader, I will ensure the gender impact of all our policies is fully assessed, tasking a Councillor and an MSP with the job of making sure our party reflects both the concerns and the aspirations of women in Scotland. It is not right that more and more women find themselves in poverty when we have such a range of powers at our disposal.

"In politics, our pride at the record number of female MSPs in the early years of the Scottish Parliament has turned to anxiety as the gender balance becomes more uneven. Even in this leadership contest, it is frustrating at best that we do not have a woman running for Deputy Leader of our Party.  We have three good candidates, but unfortunately they are all men. It reflects badly on our party and on the political environment in which we operate, that a local government or parliamentary colleague did not put her name forward and it shows the need for more positive action."

He is in contention with Kezia Dugdale for the leadership role.