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Calling for remote participation in the States Assembly, offering inclusivity training, and addressing the gender pay gap are some of the ways that a political group are aiming to support working mothers in politics.
The Privileges and Procedures Committee is set to focus on providing more support for working mothers in the political arena, after female participation in politics hit a record high in the last election.
Chair of the Committee, Karen Shenton-Stone spoke to Express about the ways the PPC is addressing challenges faced by States Members who have caring responsibilities.
Pictured: The 2022 election saw a record year for female participation in politics, with a 50% increase in female States Members.
It comes after several female politicians called for more support and spoke out about the difficulties of balancing their political roles with care duties due to the cost and availability of childcare, coupled with long working hours.
Constable Shenton-Stone said: "As a woman working in politics, I am acutely aware of the challenges we face and wholeheartedly agree that while significant strides in achieving a more gender-balanced Assembly have been made, there is still work to be done.
"Work such as this is incredibly important to ensuring that the States Assembly operates inclusively and continues to improve upon a work-life balance for all Members, including those with care responsibilities."
The Chair of the Committee said that the PPC is considering a draft proposition related to remote participation for States Members during Assembly sittings.
She explained: "Should this proposition be adopted, those with care responsibilities would be able to continue to participate in States sittings remotely, should they choose to, during health-related incidents of a family member."
Pictured: Karen Shenton-Stone is the Chair of the Privileges and Procedures Committee.
Constable Shenton-Stone added that The Diversity Forum – a sub-committee of the PPC – is working to increase inclusivity within the Assembly through initiatives such as diversity training, transparent reporting on the gender pay gap, and promoting diversity in election campaigns.
She also pointed to the fact that parental care has been an excuse for absence at States Sittings since 2020, which aimed to provide more flexibility and understanding towards those with caregiving duties.
Items included under this are the birth of a child, adoption, ante-natal appointments, breastfeeding breaks, child illness or breakdown in childcare arrangements, or other special or unexpected circumstances.
Deputy Louise Doublet brought the proposal to the States Assembly in 2020, saying it was unacceptable that States Members needed to provide often personal details about their absence to the Assembly beforehand, and that fellow Members could question that reason, and even debate and then vote on whether to allow the absence.
If the Assembly does not agree to an absence a Member is marked as 'en défaut' – or absent without excuse.
Pictured: Deputy Louise Doublet brought a proposition which made 'parental care' a valid excuse for being absent from States Sittings in 2020.
She said that this was wrong in cases of someone attending antenatal appointments or where someone had recently given birth or their partner had.
Deputy Doublet proposed that being excused for parental care reasons be put on an equal footing as being excused for being absent on States business.
She said Members needed to show they were putting young children first in their own lives as well as on the political stage.
The proposition was approved by 34 votes to seven, with one abstention.
Despite these advancements, challenges persist for working mothers in politics, as Express found out last week.
Former Health Minister Karen Wilson spoke about the difficulty in balancing family life with political duties and has called for more support for those with caring responsibilities, including leave arrangements.
Assistant Minister Andy Howell agreed balancing politics and family could be difficult and often results in personal sacrifices, especially when there are unexpected last-minute meetings.
Meanwhile, Treasury Minister Elaine Millar pointed out that long hours and early morning events can exclude or burden women with caregiving responsibilities.
Pictured: Deputy Raluca Kovacs called for more flexibility in working arrangements to better accommodate caregivers.
Deputy Raluca Kovacs agreed it could be difficult to achieve work-life balance due to unsociable working hours and has called for more flexibility in working arrangements to better accommodate caregivers.
She said: "Women are still the main carers in the family, whether that's for children or elderly parents or other family, so you can get pulled in different directions at the same time.
"The need to be flexible to adapt the way we're working are needed to work in a more effective and productive way.
"The gift of time comes with appropriate support, and to me, for each States Member to have a dedicated support officer or personal assistant would enable much more work to be delivered soon."
FOCUS: Female politicians call for more support for working mothers
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