Fighting for gender equality in parliament and beyond

The Women in the World conference I'm attending this week highlights the task ahead

Mhairi Black standing in front of Whitehall at a protest to shut down Yarl's Wood Detention Centre (Rex Features)

It is imperative that more women assume positions of political power. As a young woman in Westminster, I have experienced the old boys’ club first hand. I’ve been asked countless times if “mummy and daddy” are proud of me – a question typically accompanied by a patronising pat on the back. Only after my maiden speech, when I had the opportunity to address the chamber and put forward my own views, did the condescension tail off.

Parliament is desperately in need of reform. Should you choose to have a family, there is no maternity cover to represent your constituents, and even if parliament authorities provided family accommodation in London, office hours regularly go beyond midnight. Any time at home must be used to engage with constituents, and while constituency work is the most rewarding part of the job for me, I don’t know how my colleagues manage it while trying to maintain a family life.

The Women in the World conference takes place in London this week, and I am honoured to be included in the list of trailblazers attending. It brings together women from all backgrounds, from world leaders and CEOs to actors and activists - a diverse and inspiring group to be part of.

Events such as these, which celebrate the achievements of women and raises issues surrounding gender equality, remain vitally needed. While women are increasingly making their mark around the world, gender inequality is still rife. The statistics are startling: women perform 66 per cent of the world’s work, produce 50 per cent of the food, but earn just 10 per cent of the income and own just 1 per cent of property. In every society on earth, women and girls have access to fewer resources, opportunities and political power than men, and at least one out of every three women around the world has been beaten, coerced into sex, or otherwise abused in her lifetime.

Here in the UK, women working full-time earn up to 16 per cent less than their male counterparts, and in the parliament, which I am part of, women make up just 29 per cent of MPs.

The SNP has been taking proactive steps to improve gender equality in Scotland, in parliament, and in our party. When Nicola Sturgeon became First Minister last year, she was applauded by the UN for her gender-balanced cabinet, and the SNP’s Women’s Conference will follow our Annual Conference in Aberdeen next week. Every step must be taken to ensure women are encouraged, and not prohibited from taking up crucial positions in power. And perhaps then, the statistics will improve.