Women in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom - wikipedia Women in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom Constance Markievicz was the first woman elected to the British Parliament The representation of Women in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom has been an issue in the politics of the United Kingdom at numerous points in the 20th and 21st centuries. Originally debate centered on whether women should be allowed to vote and stand for election as Members of Parliament. The Parliament ( Qualification of Women ) Act 1918 gave women over 21 the right to stand for election as a Member of Parliament. The publication of the book Women in the House by Elizabeth Vallance in 1979 highlighted the under - representation of women in Parliament. In more modern times concerns about the under - representation of women led the Labour Party to introduce all - women short lists, something which was later held to breach discrimination laws. Between 1918 and 2015, a total of 450 women have been elected as Members of the House of Commons, which is fewer than the number of men ( 459 ) in the 2015 Parliament. The longest - serving female member of Parliament is currently informally known as the Mother of the House. Contents 1 Suffrage 2 Landmarks and records 2.1 Political firsts for women in House of Commons 2.2 Records 3 Current Representation 3.1 2017 election 3.2 Current Female Cabinet Members ( Conservative Party ) 4 Historic Representation 4.1 2015 election 4.1. 1 Female Cabinet Members 4.2 2010 election 4.3 All - women shortlists 5 See also 6 References 7 Further reading 8 External links Suffrage Main article : Women 's suffrage in the United Kingdom In 1867, John Stuart Mill was the first Member of Parliament to raise the issue of women 's suffrage in the House of Commons. Following this attempts were made to widen the franchise in every Parliament. Women gained the right to vote with the passing of the Representation of the People Act 1918 after World War I. This gave the vote to women over the age of 30. However, the Speakers Conference which was charged with looking into giving women the vote did not have as its terms of reference, consideration to women standing as candidates for parliament. However, Sir Herbert Samuel, the former Liberal Home Secretary, moved a separate motion on 23 October 1918 to allow women to be eligible as Members of Parliament. The vote was passed by 274 to 25 and the government rushed through a Bill to make it law in time for the 1918 General Election. This Bill did not specify any age restriction, unlike the voting Bill. This later led to a number of incidents of women under the age of 30, who were not allowed to vote, standing for parliament, notably the 27 - year - old Liberal Ursula Williams standing in 1923. Landmarks and records Further information : Records of members of parliament of the United Kingdom § Women Political firsts for women in House of Commons 1918 : women able to stand for Parliament. 1918 : MP elected ( Constance de Markievicz ) - for Sinn Féin Party - did not take her seat at Westminster 1919 : Member of Parliament to take seat ( Nancy Astor ) - for Coalition Conservative Party 1924 : Minister ( Margaret Bondfield ) - for Labour Party 1929 : Cabinet minister, and privy counsellor ( Margaret Bondfield ) 1948 : Chair of Committee of Whole House ( Florence Paton ) - Labour Party 1965 : Parliamentary Whip ( Harriet Slater ) - Labour Party 1970 : Deputy speaker ( Betty Harvie Anderson ) - Conservative Party 1975 : Leader of the Opposition ( Margaret Thatcher ) 1979 : Prime Minister ( Margaret Thatcher ) who led the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. 1992 : Speaker of the House of Commons ( Betty Boothroyd ) - Labour Party. As of 2017 she remains the only female to hold the office of House Speaker. 1997 : Full - time Minister for Women ( Joan Ruddock ) - Labour Party 1998 : Chief Whip ( Ann Taylor ) - Labour Party Records See also : Mother of the House and List of female Members of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom Margaret Beckett is the longest serving female MP in the history of the House of Commons. She was an MP for Lincoln from 10 October 1974 until 7 April 1979, and has served as MP for Derby South since 9 June 1983, most recently being re-elected on 8 June 2017. Harriet Harman is the longest continuously serving female MP in the history of the House of Commons. She was MP for Peckham from 28 October 1982 until 1 May 1997, and has served as MP for Camberwell and Peckham since 1 May 1997, most recently having been re-elected on 8 June 2017. On 13 June 2017 Harman was dubbed `` Mother of the House '' by Prime Minister Theresa May, in recognition of her status as longest continuously serving woman MP ( though she was not the longest serving MP overall, and would therefore not gain any official duties ). Party Name Constituency Year elected Year left Length of continuous term Length of cumulative term Conservative Astor, Nancy Nancy Astor Plymouth Sutton 1919 1945 25 years, 7 months Labour Lee, Jennie Jennie Lee North Lanarkshire & Cannock 1929 & 1945 1931 & 1970 27 years Conservative Ward, Irene Irene Ward Wallsend & Tynemouth 1931 & 1950 1945 & 1974 37 years Labour Castle, Barbara Barbara Castle Blackburn 1945 1979 33 years, 9 months Labour Dunwoody, Gwyneth Gwyneth Dunwoody Exeter, Crewe & Crewe and Nantwich 1966 & 1974 1970 & 2008 34 years, 2 months 37 years, 9 months Labour Beckett, Margaret Margaret Beckett Lincoln & Derby South 1974 & 1983 1979 & Still serving 38 years Labour Harman, Harriet Harriet Harman Peckham, then Camberwell and Peckham 1982 Still serving 35 years Current representation There are currently 208 female MPs in the House of Commons. 2017 election Further information : List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 2017 and List of United Kingdom MPs by seniority, 2017 -- 22 As elected in the 2017 general election. Political Party Number of MPs Number of Female MPs Percentage of Party 's MPs Percentage of Female MPs House of Commons 650 208 32 % 100 % Conservative 317 67 21 % 32 % Labour 262 119 45 % 57 % SNP 35 12 34 % 6 % Liberal Democrat 12 33 % 2 % DUP 10 10 % < 1 % Sinn Féin 7 29 % < 1 % Plaid Cymru 25 % < 1 % Green 100 % < 1 % Independent 100 % < 1 % Speaker 0 0 % 0 % Current Female Cabinet Members ( Conservative Party ) Theresa May - Prime Minister Amber Rudd - Secretary of State for the Home Department Justine Greening - Secretary of State for Education Baroness Evans of Bowes Park - Leader of the House of Lords Penny Mordaunt - Secretary of State for Development Karen Bradley - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport Historic representation 2015 election Further information : List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 2015 and List of United Kingdom MPs by seniority, 2015 -- 17 In the 2015 general election, 191 women were elected, making up 29 % of the House of Commons ; up from 141 and 23 % before the election. Political Party Number of MPs Number of Female MPs Percentage of Party 's MPs Percentage of Female MPs House of Commons 650 191 29 % 100 % Conservative 330 68 21 % 36 % Labour 232 99 43 % 52 % SNP 56 20 36 % 10 % Liberal Democrat 8 0 0 % 0 % DUP 8 0 0 % 0 % Sinn Féin 0 0 % 0 % Plaid Cymru 33 % < 1 % SDLP 33 % < 1 % UUP 0 0 % 0 % UKIP 0 0 % 0 % Green 100 % < 1 % Independent 100 % < 1 % Speaker 0 0 % 0 % Female Cabinet Members Theresa May - Prime Minister Amber Rudd - Secretary of State for the Home Department Elizabeth Truss - Secretary of State for Justice Justine Greening - Secretary of State for Education Baroness Evans of Bowes Park - Leader of the House of Lords Andrea Leadsom - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Priti Patel - Secretary of State for Development Karen Bradley - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 2010 election Further information : List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 2010 and List of United Kingdom MPs by seniority, 2010 -- 15 As elected in the 2010 general election. Political Party Number of MPs Number of Female MPs Percentage of Party 's MPs Percentage of Female MPs House of Commons 650 143 22 % 100 % Conservative 306 49 16 % 34 % Labour 258 81 31 % 57 % Liberal Democrat 57 7 12 % 5 % DUP 8 0 0 % 0 % SNP 6 17 % 0.7 % Sinn Féin 5 20 % 0.7 % Plaid Cymru 0 0 % 0 % SDLP 33 % 0.7 % Alliance 100 % 0.7 % Green 100 % 0.7 % Independent 100 % < 1 % Speaker 0 0 % 0 % A total of 42 female ministers have held cabinet positions since the first, Margaret Bondfield, in 1929. Tony Blair 's 1997 Cabinet had five women and was the first to include more than two female ministers at one time. The highest number of concurrent women Cabinet Ministers under Tony Blair was eight ( 36 per cent ), under Tony Blair ( then a record ) from May 2006 -- May 2007. Women Cabinet Ministers 1929 - 2016 1929 - 31 Margaret Bondfield ( Lab ) 2004 - 08 Ruth Kelly ( Lab ) 1945 - 47 Ellen Wilkinson ( Lab ) 2006 - 09 Hazel Blears ( Lab ) 1953 - 54 Florence Horsbrugh ( Con ) 2006 - 09 Jacqui Smith ( Lab ) 1964 - 70 / 74 - 76 Barbara Castle ( Lab ) 2007 - 08 Baroness Ashton ( Lab ) 1968 - 69 Judith Hart ( Lab ) 2008 - 10 Yvette Cooper ( Lab ) 1970 - 74 / 79 - 90 Margaret Thatcher ( Con ) 2008 - 10 Baroness Royall ( Lab ) 1974 - 79 Shirley Williams ( Lab ) 2010 - 12 Caroline Spelman ( Con ) 1982 - 83 Baroness Young ( Con ) 2010 - 12 Cheryl Gillan ( Con ) 1992 - 97 Gillian Shephard ( Con ) 2010 - 12 Baroness Warsi ( Con ) 1992 - 97 Virginia Bottomley ( Con ) 2010 - Theresa May ( Con ) 1997 - 98 Ann Taylor ( Lab ) 2011 - Justine Greening ( Con ) 1997 - 98 / 07 - 10 Harriet Harman ( Lab ) 2012 - 14 Maria Miller ( Con ) 1997 - 2001 Mo Mowlam ( Lab ) 2012 - 16 Theresa Villiers ( Con ) 1997 - 2003 Clare Short ( Lab ) 2014 - 16 Nicky Morgan ( Con ) 1998 - 2001 Baroness Jay ( Lab ) 2014 - Elizabeth Truss ( Con ) 2001 - 03 Helen Liddell ( Lab ) 2014 - 16 Baroness Stowell ( Con ) 2001 - 02 Estelle Morris ( Lab ) 2015 - Amber Rudd ( Con ) 2001 - 07 Hilary Armstrong ( Lab ) 2016 - Baroness Evans ( Con ) 2001 - 07 Patricia Hewitt ( Lab ) 2016 - Karen Bradley ( Con ) 2001 - 07 / 09 - 10 Tessa Jowell ( Lab ) 2016 - Andrea Leadsom ( Con ) 2003 - 07 Baroness Amos ( Lab ) 2016 - Priti Patel ( Con ) All - women shortlists Main article : All - women shortlists All - women shortlists are a method of affirmative action which has been used by the Labour Party to increase the representation of women in Parliament. As of 2015, 117 Labour MPs have been elected to the House of Commons after being selected as candidates through an all - women shortlist. In 2002 this method of selection was ruled to breach the Sex Discrimination Act 1975. In response to this ruling the Sex Discrimination ( Election Candidates ) Act 2002 legalised all - women short lists as a method of selection. The Equality Act 2010 extends this exemption from discrimination law to 2030. See also British politics portal Blair Babe Election results of women standing for the Parliament of the United Kingdom ( to 1945 ) Lists of female political office - holders in the United Kingdom Timeline of female MPs in the House of Commons Widow 's succession Women in the House of Lords European countries by percentage of women in national parliaments Women in positions of power Critical mass ( gender politics ) Women in Parliaments Women in government References Jump up ^ Heater, Derek ( 2006 ). Citizenship in Britain : A History. Edinburgh University Press. p. 145. ISBN 9780748626724. Jump up ^ Keen, Richard ( 19 June 2015 ). `` Briefing Paper Number SN01250 : Women in Parliament and Government '' ( PDF ). House of Commons Library. Retrieved 21 June 2015. Jump up ^ `` Women in parliament ''. BBC News. London : BBC. 31 October 2008. Retrieved 21 June 2015. Jump up ^ Samuel, Viscount ( 1950 ). Memoirs. p. 131. Jump up ^ `` Parliament ( Qualification Of Women ) Bill ''. Parliamentary Debates ( Hansard ). House of Commons. 6 November 1918. col. 2186 -- 2202. Retrieved 21 June 2015. Jump up ^ Cheltenham Chronicle, Gloucestershire, 8 December 1923 ^ Jump up to : Keen, Richard ; Cracknell, Richard. `` Women in Parliament and Government ''. Jump up ^ CH. Succeeded her husband Waldorf Astor, 2nd Viscount Astor as MP after he became a member of the House of Lords due to inheriting the title of Viscount Astor upon the death of his father. Jump up ^ Married to fellow MP Anuerin Bevan. She was made a life peer as Baroness Lee of Asheridge, of the City of Westminster in 1970. Jump up ^ `` No. 45229 ''. The London Gazette. 10 November 1970. p. 12333. Jump up ^ CH, DBE. She was made a life peer as Baroness Ward of North Tyneside, of North Tyneside in the County of Tyne and Wear, in 1975. Jump up ^ Wife of Edward Castle, Baron Castle. She was made a life peer as Baroness Castle of Blackburn, in 1990. Jump up ^ Daughter of Morgan Phillips & Norah Phillips, Baroness Phillips. Mother of Tamsin Dunwoody. Jump up ^ DBE Jump up ^ QC Jump up ^ Lowther, Ed ; Thornton, Charlotte ( 8 May 2015 ). `` Election 2015 : Number of women in Parliament rises by a third ''. BBC News. Retrieved 21 June 2015. Jump up ^ `` Members of the House of Commons ''. UK Parliament. 2015. Retrieved 21 June 2015. Jump up ^ `` Ministers - GOV.UK ''. www.gov.uk. Retrieved 2017 - 06 - 14. Jump up ^ `` Election 2015 : Number of women in Parliament rises by a third ''. BBC. 8 May 2015. Retrieved 4 October 2017. Jump up ^ `` Factsheet M4 : Women in the House of Commons '' ( PDF ). House of Commons Information Office. June 2010. Retrieved 21 June 2015. Jump up ^ Kelly, Richard ; White, Isobel. `` All - women shortlists ''. Further reading `` Women in the House of Commons inquiry ''. Women and Equalities Committee. Retrieved 4 October 2017. `` Women in the House of Commons ( archieved factsheets ) ''. House of Commons Information Office, House of Commons Library. Retrieved 4 October 2017. Vallance, Elizabeth M. ( 1979 ). Women in the House : a study of women Members of Parliament. Athlone Press. ISBN 9780485111866. All Party Parliamentary Group Women in Parliament ( July 2014 ). `` Improving Parliament : Creating a Better and More Representative House '' ( PDF ). House of Commons. Retrieved 21 June 2015. `` Harman 's office Thatcher U-turn ''. BBC News. London : BBC. 16 September 2009. Retrieved 21 June 2015. External links `` Parliament and Women ''. UK Parliament website. `` Women in the House of Commons ''. UK Parliament website. `` Women and the House of Lords ''. UK Parliament website. `` Campaigning for women in the Lords ''. UK Parliament website. `` Accommodating women peers ''. UK Parliament website. Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Women_in_the_House_of_Commons_of_the_United_Kingdom&oldid=811328265 '' Categories : House of Commons of the United Kingdom Women in the United Kingdom Hidden categories : Articles with hCards All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from June 2017 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Add links This page was last edited on 20 November 2017, at 22 : 48. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: longest continuously serving female mp in house of commons
Answer: Margaret Beckett