24th July 2007

Green Party Principal Speaker Siân Berry, who was brought up in Cheltenham, but now lives in London, comments on the findings by The Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) today, that warn gender equality is still generations away and calls for urgent action across all aspects of life to close the stubborn gaps within ten years.

Completing the Revolution', the EOC’s final report before it is absorbed into the new Commission for Equality and Human Rights on 1 October, sets out the most comprehensive ever measure of gender equality in Britain. It looks for the first time, not just at pay and power, but also support for families and access to public services, justice and safety.

The EOC has identified 22 leading indicators of the state of gender equality, and predicted how many years (to the nearest 5) that it will take to reach equality. These include:
- The "power gap" for women in Parliament will take almost 200 years to close and it will take up to 65 years to have a more equitable balance of women at the top of FTSE 100 companies.
- The "pensions gap" will take 45 years to equalise: retired women’s income is currently 40 per cent less than men's.
- The “justice and safety gap" : an estimated 1 million women in England and Wales experienced abuse from a current or former  partner in the last year."


Siân Berry said: "The EOC's findings clearly show that the UK has a long way to go to achieve gender equality. Make no mistake - today's report shows there is no room for complacency in fighting for equal rights for men and women. The statistics are staggering. Women who work full-time earn, on average, 17 per cent less per hour than men working full-time. For women who work part-time, the gap in pay relative to full-time men is 38 per cent per hour. The causes of the pay gap are complex, but in part it's a result of women 'trading down' or facing other work and pay penalties once they become mothers.  The average woman working full-time could lose out on £330,000 over the course of her working life, and 45 per cent  of pregnant women employees experience tangible discrimination. There is only one place for every 3.6 children under eight with a child minder, in full day care or in out of school care.

Siân Berry said: "This report looks at women as a group, but it should not be forgotten that within that more than half of the population some women suffer many further disadvantages, as a result of their ethnic background, their sexuality, through being asylum-seekers or having been in jail. These are issues of great concern to the Green Party.

Siân Berry concluded: "The EOC is urging action to complete what they term 'the unfinished revolution' and to speed up the pace of change. I hope that the Commission for Equality and Human Rights - which will soon absorb the EOC - will take notice of their recommendations."

For further information, please see http://www.eoc.org.uk/