The news that Plaid Cymru Leader Leanne Wood AM has announced that Ceredigion AM, Elin Jones has been appointed as her Deputy Leader of the party’s group in the National Assembly.means that Plaid may have the highest number of Women in it Leadership pf any party in Europe
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| Dream Team? Elin Jones and Leanne Wood |
Ms Jones was nominated for the position by Leanne and she accepted the role following a vote at the party’s group meeting at the National Assembly yesterday.
This means that Women now have most of the major Roles in the Party.
Leader Leanne Wood AM
Deputy Leader Elin Jones AM
UK Palemetary Leader Elfyn Llwyd
President Jill Evans
Chair Helen Mary Jones
Chief Executive Rhuanedd Richards
Honorary President Dafydd Wigley
Vice President Jonathan Clark
President Jill Evans
Chair Helen Mary Jones
Chief Executive Rhuanedd Richards
Honorary President Dafydd Wigley
Vice President Jonathan Clark
For those who like myself believe that there should be more Women in leadership positions throughout the Political Spectrum this is welcome.
I remember a circular from Plaids HQ in the 80'giving advise on electoral campaigning with a piece that read something line.
"Organise the addressing of envelopes for your electoral address The ladies are quite good at this".
The general feeling even then was that Women's position in the Party and Politics in general was to support a Male candidate. .
Indeed Plaid has still yet have a Women representing a Westminster seat or have a Women fight a truly marginal seat.
Of course Myfanwy Davies (Llanelli 2010) and Ann Owen (Conwy 2001) have fought P alimentary fought seats that Pliad had any some hope of winning largely due to the success in wining the Assembly constituency. But apart for these are there any other examples?
Even in the Assembly only Elin Jones (Ceredigion) and Helen Mary Jones (Llanelli) have represented Constituencies with the rest being made up on the top regional list. whre Plaid had a policy of positively promoting Women to the top of the regional list.
Some would argue that selection of candidates should be solely on merit but history shows us that a large part of 50% of our population are ignored and if you look at the ratio where positive promotion has not taken place and only a few Women actually are elected its clear that the men were not selected on merit,. But because they were men. How many of the undoubtedly talented Women Plaid have in the Assembly (including Leanne) would have been elected if this policy had not been promoted.?
Would we have lost them to mediocre men who may have not been so effective?
Despite my headlines (or because of it) I welcome the new leadership of Plaid and have long supported the promotion of Women in all political Parties not because I believe that Women will not take place in the Yah -Boo politics in the chamber or that they will be less averse to military adventures. But because we are wasting talent. But the Party needs to go further. Often its the case of the party having women standing in numbers, when the Party in the doldrums.Only to find Men standing when the polls are healthier.
Who knows there may be a young girl looking at the position of Plaid women in the Party's leadership who will be inspired to take a part in Welsh Politics .
Could the first President of an Independent Wales be looking at the news and realising that she can inspire a nation?
Of course Myfanwy Davies (Llanelli 2010) and Ann Owen (Conwy 2001) have fought P alimentary fought seats that Pliad had any some hope of winning largely due to the success in wining the Assembly constituency. But apart for these are there any other examples?
Even in the Assembly only Elin Jones (Ceredigion) and Helen Mary Jones (Llanelli) have represented Constituencies with the rest being made up on the top regional list. whre Plaid had a policy of positively promoting Women to the top of the regional list.
Some would argue that selection of candidates should be solely on merit but history shows us that a large part of 50% of our population are ignored and if you look at the ratio where positive promotion has not taken place and only a few Women actually are elected its clear that the men were not selected on merit,. But because they were men. How many of the undoubtedly talented Women Plaid have in the Assembly (including Leanne) would have been elected if this policy had not been promoted.?
Would we have lost them to mediocre men who may have not been so effective?
Despite my headlines (or because of it) I welcome the new leadership of Plaid and have long supported the promotion of Women in all political Parties not because I believe that Women will not take place in the Yah -Boo politics in the chamber or that they will be less averse to military adventures. But because we are wasting talent. But the Party needs to go further. Often its the case of the party having women standing in numbers, when the Party in the doldrums.Only to find Men standing when the polls are healthier.
Who knows there may be a young girl looking at the position of Plaid women in the Party's leadership who will be inspired to take a part in Welsh Politics .
Could the first President of an Independent Wales be looking at the news and realising that she can inspire a nation?
3 comments:
Very nice post. Although to answer your question Leanne Wood never needed the women-first rule to get top of her list, she won outright IIRC (can't remember 2003 now though). Bethan Jenkins benefited from the women-first rule in 2007 but then won outright in 2011. Not sure about Nerys but she probably won outright as well. But it's true the measures have helped more Plaid women get elected.
Tne question is not that they are women, but, are they any good? Are they going to defeat Nuclear Submarine Jones and his dismal failures and bring our country to independence?
Anon 09:21
I reckon that they will make a difference
Anon 8:56
Well yes but would they have been elected if the Assembly was byonly by FPTP for all constituencies. Would Ceredigion gone for Cynog Dafis and would Helen Mary Jones have fought Llaneli?
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