After Neil Paris became the last MP to be involved in a scandal after admitting to intentionally watching pornography in the House of Commons, political parties and community authorities were accused of not doing enough to rid parliament of the “parasite” image. Although changes were promised after #MeToo – and with speaker Lindsay Hoyle backing MPs who no longer have direct staff – one government minister said it was “horrible and disturbing” to see so many reports of unacceptable behavior. University Minister Michel Donelan told Sky News that the “half-witted dinosaurs” were in the minority and “did not represent the majority of members of parliament”. But others felt it was time for compulsory education for all their colleagues, as up to 56 MEPs are accused of sexual misconduct. Chris Bryant told the Guardian that parliament “is no different from any other workplace” and needs to do more to tackle sexism and harassment in particular. He said: “It is time to implement regular training for all MPs in best practices as an employer and in understanding the code of conduct and rules of Parliament.” A Conservative MP also admitted: “It should not and it really is.” Abena Oppong-Asare said the Working Women’s Network she chairs provides “resilience training” so that women candidates for public office are “ready for the unfortunate fact that they will face misogyny and sexism”. He told the Guardian that such training should not be allowed outside, but added: “Unfortunately, in 2022 we have to do this to ensure that women in politics are encouraged to stay in politics.” The Labor leader also said that improving diversity and representation is also key to reducing the sexism and harassment women face in parliament. Following the recent wave of scandals, a lawmaker told the Guardian that they had begun telling new staff to be wary of Westminster and warned them to “have their minds with them”. They said: “It’s not a pleasant conversation, but I just want them to know how to avoid getting stuck.” The government has so far resisted supporting compulsory education specifically to address sexism in addition to the introduction that all MPs receive when joining the Commons and the voluntary “everyone appreciation” session. Mark Spencer, the leader of the Commons, rejected the idea last week, saying: “Obviously, different people with different skills will be elected, but I think we could all benefit from the education, honestly. “I would welcome and encourage more training for MPs and more opportunities for them to improve themselves, but whether this is mandatory is a different matter. If you force someone to go to a training program that they really do not want to participate in, they will not get involved and will not get anything out of the training. “I think you are much better with the carrot here than the stick.” The Conservatives also faced calls to ensure a woman is elected to run in the by-elections when Paris leaves her post at Tiverton and Honiton. Conservative peer and election expert Robert Hayward said the party “would be willing to choose someone who is first, local and second, woman” as that would be “the best way to survive” a potentially exhausting campaign. While the Tories secured a 24,000-vote majority in the last election, opposition parties may seek to use Johnson’s lower popularity as an opportunity to try to provoke an upheaval similar to that seen in North Shropshire – after Owen Paterson’s resignation – or Chesham and Amersham – after the death of Cheryl Gillan. One MP also said that the Conservatives should have a clearer policy of sexual harassment, so that when the next incident occurs there is an appropriate procedure to deal with them. Another said he had never been sexually harassed in Westminster and was nervous that the attention given to it would “exclude women” from entering politics. A representative of the House of Commons said: “Both houses have made it clear that appreciation for everyone’s education is necessary for all those working in parliament. It was attended by more than 6,000 access holders, including more than 790 colleagues and more than 600 Members. The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive so far – over 92% of participants said the lesson was good or too good for increasing their ability to recognize unacceptable behavior. “Parliament’s code of conduct makes clear the standards of conduct expected of everyone in parliament, with both bodies offering a range of resources to ensure that everyone working in parliament is able to recognize bullying, harassment and sexual harassment. and feel confident that action is being taken to address and prevent them. . »
