Patsy Calton Award 2010: Submit your nomination now!! (Women Liberal Democrats)

Women Liberal Democrats <women@libdems.org.uk>

Patsy Calton Award 2010: Submit your nomination now!!

June 14, 2010 2:34 PM

Patsy Calton Award 2010: Recognising the role of women 'The workers not winners'

The well known headline 'The workers the winners' has painful poignancy to the many women and men in the party who are bewailing the election of so few women Liberal Democrat MPs. Despite the work within the party to get more women into potentially winnable seats our progress has taken a step back with a reduction of our number of women MPs from nine to

seven.

In the short term there is an opportunity to recognise the amazing work that women do for the party. The Patsy Calton award is designed to

celebrate the achievements and inspirational actions of women within the Liberal Democrats.

Patsy Calton was our former MP for Cheadle who sadly lost her battle with breast cancer in May 2005 one month after being re-elected to Parliament. The award is in memory Patsy who won the Cheadle seat by 33 votes in 2001 - it was the most marginal sat in the country. Patsy was a real

worker both in the constituency and in parliament, she campaigned all year round and in May 2005 she increased her majority to 4020.

Last year's winner of the award was Jeanette Sunderland a district c

councillor for the city of Bradford. Jeanette has been group leader and

constituency organiser amongst other roles, and has shown inspiration through her campaign to combat the BNP in Bradford when no other party would.

There are many inspirational women in our party and many others that work tirelessly in a whole range of roles who deserve recognition.

To find out how to nominate a woman for the Patsy Calton prize, please contact women liberal democrats - women@libdems.org.uk or phone 020 72227 1208. The deadline for nominations is Friday 16 July 2010. OR You can download a form from the download section of the website and send it in to us.

In the longer term we need a radical look at how we can make sure that we do ensure that more women are elected as MPs in the future. There is already noticeable criticism in the national press, of how few women MPs we have. Comment is also being made that of our five members of the cabinet none of these is women. Jenni Russell of the Sunday Times has commented: 'the Liberal Democrats, the supposed mould breakers of

politics who did not select a single woman to take up one of their five

cabinet seats' she declares 'the election's biggest losers is us, Ladies'