Commons Briefing paper by Isabel Buchanan, Elliot Bridges, Andy Powell, Esme Kirk-Wade, Sonja Stiebahl, Paul Bolton and Shadi Danechi. It was first published on Monday, 23 March 2015. It was last updated on Monday, 23 March 2026.

Women in Politics and Public Life

In both politics and public life in the UK, women have historically been underrepresented. In recent years, however, women’s representation has increased. Men are, however, still often overrepresented, particularly in more senior positions.

This briefing presents statistics on a range of positions held by women in UK politics and public life. Data on the demographic characteristics of different workforces tends to be limited, so it is not always possible to include intersectional analysis, for example, on disabled women or women from minority ethnic groups.

UK Parliament and Government

As of March 2026, around 41% of MPs in the House of Commons were female, and 32% of the House of Lords. Of the 22 cabinet members, 10 were female. This is shown in the figure below.

Graphic showing that, in February 2026, 41% of MPs were female, 32% of peers were female, and 45% of cabinet members were female

Devolved legislatures

Representation across the devolved legislatures of the UK is comparable to those of the Commons. This information is shown in the figure below.

Graphic showing that, in February 2026, 40% of Northern Ireland Assembly members were female, 45% of Scottish Parliament members were female, and 43% of members of the Senedd Cymru.

Public life

Representation in public life has improved, though differences often exist depending the grade or kind of job someone holds.

The figure below shows the proportion of various professionals which were female in the latest data available, as well as an example of a more senior roles associated with that profession.

Graphic showing the proportion of various public sector roles which were held by women. These range from 88% of primary teachers being female, compared to 74% of primary headteachers, to 15% of officers in the armed forces being female, compared to 9% of senior officers

Selected sources

See document for a full list of sources.

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Secondary information

Type: Research briefing
Reference: SN01250
Subjects: House of Commons Education Armed forces Civil service Women Equality House of Lords Gender European Parliament Scottish Parliament Judges Ethnic groups General elections Local government NHS Police Public appointments Northern Ireland Assembly Members National Assembly for Wales Politics and government Ministers Peers
Contains statistics: Yes
Published by: Social and General Statistics Section; House of Commons Library
Link: View this Research briefing on researchbriefings.parliament.uk