Exploring the Descriptive Representation of Women: The Case of the National Assembly of Wales
With the devolved institutions nearing their 20th anniversary, the Scottish Parliament, National Assembly for Wales and the Northern Ireland Assembly have changed the face of politics within the United Kingdom. The National Assembly for Wales, in particular, has made extensive advances in the field...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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White Rose University Press
2018-03-01
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| Series: | Undergraduate Journal of Politics and International Relations |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.ujpir-journal.com/articles/59 |
| _version_ | 1818042328331321344 |
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| author | Laura Ann Waddilove |
| author_facet | Laura Ann Waddilove |
| author_sort | Laura Ann Waddilove |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | With the devolved institutions nearing their 20th anniversary, the Scottish Parliament, National Assembly for Wales and the Northern Ireland Assembly have changed the face of politics within the United Kingdom. The National Assembly for Wales, in particular, has made extensive advances in the field of female representation, notably being the first devolved legislature to achieve perfect gender parity. However, the question remains as to whether this parity was achieved through luck or design. This dissertation draws on the work of Pitkin to identify the importance of the relationship between both substantive and descriptive representation and then explores the concepts and contemporary academia to identify the leading theories within this field. The National Assembly will then be analysed in order to establish the measures that have been put in place by the institution in order to protect and promote a commitment to the equality of representation. Four political parties within the National Assembly for Wales will be assessed including the Welsh Labour Party, Welsh Liberal Democrats, Plaid Cymru and the Welsh Conservatives drawing on evidence from 1999–2016. Both chapters will draw upon semi-structured interviews conducted with the Diversity and Inclusion Team and female Assembly Members from across political parties in order to allow for conclusions to be drawn as to what the most influential factors have been in the success of the National Assembly’s female representation, and whether the Assembly has been successful due to luck or design. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-10T08:44:34Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f4b37f26f7b7446f99729ccf47f59d23 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2398-5992 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-10T08:44:34Z |
| publishDate | 2018-03-01 |
| publisher | White Rose University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Undergraduate Journal of Politics and International Relations |
| spelling | doaj.art-f4b37f26f7b7446f99729ccf47f59d232022-12-22T01:55:46ZengWhite Rose University PressUndergraduate Journal of Politics and International Relations2398-59922018-03-011110.22599/ujpir.593Exploring the Descriptive Representation of Women: The Case of the National Assembly of WalesLaura Ann Waddilove0Cardiff UniversityWith the devolved institutions nearing their 20th anniversary, the Scottish Parliament, National Assembly for Wales and the Northern Ireland Assembly have changed the face of politics within the United Kingdom. The National Assembly for Wales, in particular, has made extensive advances in the field of female representation, notably being the first devolved legislature to achieve perfect gender parity. However, the question remains as to whether this parity was achieved through luck or design. This dissertation draws on the work of Pitkin to identify the importance of the relationship between both substantive and descriptive representation and then explores the concepts and contemporary academia to identify the leading theories within this field. The National Assembly will then be analysed in order to establish the measures that have been put in place by the institution in order to protect and promote a commitment to the equality of representation. Four political parties within the National Assembly for Wales will be assessed including the Welsh Labour Party, Welsh Liberal Democrats, Plaid Cymru and the Welsh Conservatives drawing on evidence from 1999–2016. Both chapters will draw upon semi-structured interviews conducted with the Diversity and Inclusion Team and female Assembly Members from across political parties in order to allow for conclusions to be drawn as to what the most influential factors have been in the success of the National Assembly’s female representation, and whether the Assembly has been successful due to luck or design.https://www.ujpir-journal.com/articles/59WalesWomenWelsh AssemblyRepresentation |
| spellingShingle | Laura Ann Waddilove Exploring the Descriptive Representation of Women: The Case of the National Assembly of Wales Undergraduate Journal of Politics and International Relations Wales Women Welsh Assembly Representation |
| title | Exploring the Descriptive Representation of Women: The Case of the National Assembly of Wales |
| title_full | Exploring the Descriptive Representation of Women: The Case of the National Assembly of Wales |
| title_fullStr | Exploring the Descriptive Representation of Women: The Case of the National Assembly of Wales |
| title_full_unstemmed | Exploring the Descriptive Representation of Women: The Case of the National Assembly of Wales |
| title_short | Exploring the Descriptive Representation of Women: The Case of the National Assembly of Wales |
| title_sort | exploring the descriptive representation of women the case of the national assembly of wales |
| topic | Wales Women Welsh Assembly Representation |
| url | https://www.ujpir-journal.com/articles/59 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT lauraannwaddilove exploringthedescriptiverepresentationofwomenthecaseofthenationalassemblyofwales |