Local MP, Karen Bradley joined colleagues in Parliament recently to mark 100 years of women’s suffrage.
Karen joined other female Parliamentarians and the Prime Minister in Westminster Hall and the Central Lobby of Parliament for an event to mark the occasion that included the original Representation of the People Act 1918 on display along with other suffragette artefacts.
Karen said,
“Coming from a family of Mancunian stock, Emmeline Pankhurst is my suffragette heroine, and we cannot forget that these women campaigned, sometimes at huge personal cost, for the most basic rights modern women enjoy today.
“I am privileged and proud to be one of the 67 women Conservatives elected in 2017 as well as a woman member of the Cabinet working alongside a female Prime Minister and two female leaders of the largest parties in Northern Ireland. It is therefore important to reflect on a century of votes for women and all that the suffrage movement achieved, and to continue to work towards equality for all women across society.”
Karen is supporting a year-long programme of events organised by the UK Parliament to mark 100 years since the 1918 Representation of the People Act, which extended the right to vote to all men over 21 and the first women, making this one of the most important centenaries in British democratic history.
The Vote 100 programme includes a wide range of events and activities commemorating the women and men who fought to achieve electoral equality.
Throughout the year there will be a major exhibition in Parliament – “Voice and Vote” as well as a number of UK-wide events, such as UK Parliament Week 2018 from 12-18 November and “EqualiTeas”- a UK-wide celebration of the 1928 Equal Franchise Act which will take place between 18 June and 2 July.
Schools and community groups in Staffordshire Moorlands are encouraged to get involved in debating and celebrating this important anniversary in our democracy. More information can be found at www.parliament.uk/get-involved/vote-100/