Time for a Women's Caucus

Drawing on inspiration from the Northern Ireland Assembly, the Senedd and the Scottish Parliament, the Fawcett Society will shortly convene all women MPs to facilitate the launching of a powerful women’s caucus.

Please see our FAQ's on the Caucus for women MP's:

Has there been a women's caucus before?

There has never been a Women’s Caucus in the UK Parliament (Westminster). Our devolved nations are ahead! The Scottish Parliament (Holyrood), Welsh Senedd (Welsh Parliament), and Northern Ireland Assembly all have Women’s Caucuses.  

Formal and informal women’s parliamentary networks to facilitate cross-party cooperation are fundamental to the standards for a Gender Sensitive Parliament. In recognition of this, the UK Parliament committed to creating a Women’s Caucus as part of the 2022 Kigali Declaration for gender equality and gender sensitive parliament.

Ok, I am interested, how will the caucus operate? 

We will hold an inaugural meeting for women MPs on 9 September, where they will discuss the terms of reference and institutional background for the Caucus.

Will Fawcett run the caucus / set the agenda / control who meets MP’s?

No! We are convening the first meeting alongside the Institute for Government to help set it up. After that, the caucus will decide how it wants to proceed.

Is the Women’s Caucus just for MPs from one Political Party? 

No! The Women’s Caucus is a cross-party endeavour. We need women from across the political spectrum to work together to ensure women are at the center of policymaking.

Can men be members? 

No. But as always, we need men as allies and supporters!

Does this replace / duplicate All Party Parliamentary Groups? (All-Party Parliamentary Groups (APPGs) are informal groups of MPs and Lords from all political parties, focussed on specific issues or topics of interest).  

No! APPG’s have a significant role to play in their focus on a breadth of issues that women face. We hope that the Women’s Caucus and relevant APPG’s will work in collaboration and complement each other.

How will the caucus work with civil society groups? 

This will be up to the caucus to decide. The Fawcett Society aims to be a close ally to the Caucus, alongside many other brilliant organisations working to further women’s rights.

Who will lead the caucus? 

The caucus will decide on appropriate organisational structures.

Manage Cookie Preferences