Gordon Brown blasts absence of women from top boards
08/03/2010
Gordon Brown has said that the absence of women from the boards of some of Britain's top companies is "completely unacceptable".
In a statement to coincide with International Women's Day, the PM called for a "dramatic change" in the composition of company boards in future. If this does not happen he would consider "more serious action to ensure companies recruit from the diverse pool of exceptional talent we have in the UK".
Gordon Brown has called for companies to report on their actions to increase the number of women on their boards and other senior management positions. They have asked the Financial Reporting Council to add this in top their code of conduct.
He said: "We all recognise the value of strong role models for women in all walks of life – and there are many in politics, the arts, public services, sport and the third sector, but there are too few in Britain's boardrooms.
"When more than half of graduates are women, it is completely unacceptable that some of our top 100 public companies have not a single woman on their boards, and that none at all have a majority of women on their boards."
Only 10% of directors in Britain's top 100 companies are women, and 25 of the top firms have no women board members at all.
According to the guardian.co.uk, eight out of 10 people believe that increasing the number of women in boardrooms to match the number of men will improve the working of the business by providing a better understanding of customers.
Two-thirds believe firms are losing out on talent by having too few women in senior roles.
According to Harriet Harman,the minister for women and equality these poll findings signal a "sea-change" in society's view of women in work.
"Too many British boardrooms are still no-go areas for women. Women are important consumers and employees. We'll never get a proper meritocracy or truly family-friendly workplaces from male-dominated boards," said Harman.
"Businesses that run on the basis of an old boy network and do not draw on the talents of all the population will not be the ones that flourish and prosper in the 21st century."
Harman said "the poll results show public opinion is far ahead of reality in some parts of the City, with equality now a mainstream issue rather than one on the fringes".
"The challenge is for policymakers and business to catch up," added Harman
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