:00:00. > :00:00.of hate crime was on the agenda. Questions to the Minister for women
:00:00. > :00:15.and equality. Thank you. The Prime Minister and I
:00:16. > :00:18.could not be clearer, we want to consign the gender pay gap to the
:00:19. > :00:24.history books. We are introducing new regulations requiring employers
:00:25. > :00:29.information, to drive change this. information, to drive change this.
:00:30. > :00:37.Transparency is important, and we want to tackle the underlying causes
:00:38. > :00:43.of the gap, so we want to see girls in a broad range of careers. The
:00:44. > :00:45.Secretary of State, will she forego her salary from the 9th of November
:00:46. > :00:48.until the end of the calendar year until the end of the calendar year
:00:49. > :00:54.so she knows from personal experience what it feels like to do
:00:55. > :00:59.the work of a male colleague for 20% less salary? Wouldn't she say that
:01:00. > :01:03.all governments have failed in this field, and now the time is not of
:01:04. > :01:07.declarations of change over the generation, but to seize the
:01:08. > :01:10.legislative agenda for which you would have massive support across
:01:11. > :01:21.the House to finally bring pay a quality to women in the country? I
:01:22. > :01:24.am not interested in token gestures, he can give up his salary if he feel
:01:25. > :01:26.so strongly and wants to make a statement. The important thing is
:01:27. > :01:36.that this government is taking action on an issue his party did not
:01:37. > :01:40.take action on for 13 years. He is right to say that this does now need
:01:41. > :01:42.to be tackled by legislation, which is why the government will be
:01:43. > :01:50.publishing regulation shortly to make it happen. Women over 40 in
:01:51. > :01:53.juror the biggest gender pay gap. What policies does the Minister have
:01:54. > :02:03.two address that problem specifically? Can I thank her very
:02:04. > :02:07.much. She may be interested to know that in the latest gender pay gap
:02:08. > :02:16.figures published this month, women aged between 40 and 49 had seen a
:02:17. > :02:19.1.6% drop in the gender pay grab, which is repeated in the over 50s
:02:20. > :02:25.and over 60s. But she is right to say that this needs to be tackled. I
:02:26. > :02:29.regulations which will provide regulations which will provide
:02:30. > :02:34.transparency. We're also doing a lot of work to how we can help women to
:02:35. > :02:37.juggle caring responsibilities which come in when they are older, and
:02:38. > :02:40.they are also able to request they are also able to request
:02:41. > :02:45.flexible working, as introduced by this government. At the gender gap
:02:46. > :02:50.presentation the other evening we heard how gender diversity must not
:02:51. > :02:56.be an add-on to another role, but it seems that as Education Minister you
:02:57. > :02:59.have had it added on as your role. But what action will be taken to
:03:00. > :03:05.make sure there is someone dedicated in every department to make sure the
:03:06. > :03:10.gender gap has is Scott read off? -- got rid of. I was Minister of
:03:11. > :03:19.equality is in the last Parliament, and I took the role with me. I have
:03:20. > :03:24.been Minister for Women longer than education. He will look at the
:03:25. > :03:27.benches and see that the government takes its responsibilities
:03:28. > :03:31.seriously, whether it is the gender pay gap or equalities issues, they
:03:32. > :03:36.run through all departments and this government. Will the Minister
:03:37. > :03:40.pay gap of all government pay gap of all government
:03:41. > :03:44.departments and quangos, because a lot of government quangos have a
:03:45. > :03:46.gender pay gap, and perhaps the government should sort out its own
:03:47. > :03:54.House before lecturing everyone else. He might be interested to know
:03:55. > :04:05.that the overall gender pay gap for civil service employees fell from
:04:06. > :04:07.13.6% in 2014, two 12.8. In the Ministry of Justice it is 11%, and
:04:08. > :04:12.the regulations we are publishing will also apply to the public
:04:13. > :04:18.sector. As the information is public, I would be happy to write
:04:19. > :04:21.last week, the annual surveys of last week, the annual surveys of
:04:22. > :04:34.hours and earnings, the gender pay gap fell by 0.8%, to 9.5%. But in
:04:35. > :04:43.Scotland it fell from 1.8 to 7.5. Will the Minister discussed this
:04:44. > :04:50.with Scottish ministers, as we're cutting it faster? I was delighted
:04:51. > :04:55.to visit Scotland recently to meet counterparts in the Scottish
:04:56. > :05:04.successful female entrepreneurs and successful female entrepreneurs and
:05:05. > :05:06.the meat a person doing lots of work on the government for women in
:05:07. > :05:11.enterprise. We are stronger together because we can all learn lessons.
:05:12. > :05:16.The gender pay gap in the finance and insurance sector is the biggest
:05:17. > :05:27.in the land, 35%. What is the government doing to tackle that? He
:05:28. > :05:28.sectors are already taking sectors are already
:05:29. > :05:28.responsibility for tackling this responsibility for tackling this
:05:29. > :05:31.issue. They are learning from the issue. They are learning from the
:05:32. > :05:40.voluntary approach from the women on boards issues. And I am delighted
:05:41. > :05:41.that people in the finance and insurance sector have launched
:05:42. > :05:50.voluntary initiatives to make sure companies are publishing their own
:05:51. > :05:54.rightly highlighted that the public rightly highlighted that the public
:05:55. > :05:59.sector is very good at closing the gender pay gap in comparison to
:06:00. > :06:04.the, the Resolution Foundation estimates that care workers are
:06:05. > :06:08.collectively paid ?130 million below the national minimum wage because of
:06:09. > :06:13.employers' failure to pay travel time and essentials to do their
:06:14. > :06:17.jobs, such as uniforms and mobile phones. What steps is the Minister
:06:18. > :06:22.taking to close the pay gap in this aspect of the private sector, in
:06:23. > :06:27.which 78% of those working are women? She is right to point out
:06:28. > :06:35.that certain sectors are very female dominated, which contributes to the
:06:36. > :06:41.ongoing gender pay gap, so I welcome the fact that we will come onto
:06:42. > :06:44.raising aspirations of girls in terms of the jobs they want to do
:06:45. > :06:47.and the careers they want to go into. At in terms of enforcing the
:06:48. > :06:52.national minimum wage, the government is committed to that, and
:06:53. > :06:57.recently republished the list of the names of the employers who are not
:06:58. > :07:05.which is unacceptable. The which is unacceptable. The
:07:06. > :07:08.government has been continuing the work that was started under the
:07:09. > :07:13.previous Coalition Government to encourage body confidence with the
:07:14. > :07:20.aim of promoting young people is media literacy, Brazilians and
:07:21. > :07:29.practising... -- resilience. We published guidance on teaching about
:07:30. > :07:33.body confidence... Models, academics and professionals are coming to
:07:34. > :07:39.Parliament to discuss what the fashion industry can do to promote
:07:40. > :07:43.positive ideals for young people. Does she agree that a collaborative
:07:44. > :07:50.approach is essential to tackle the lack of self-esteem that affects too
:07:51. > :07:55.many young people? I would like to congratulate my honourable friend
:07:56. > :07:59.for the fantastic work she does for the all-party group on body image.
:08:00. > :08:01.She has been a fantastic champion and she is absolutely right that
:08:02. > :08:05.effective change will only be effective change will only be
:08:06. > :08:09.achieved by cooperation and collaboration. I met with the
:08:10. > :08:14.British fashion Council and the campaign group to discuss how we can
:08:15. > :08:18.make this happen for the good of those in the fashion industry, those
:08:19. > :08:28.who aspire to it, and most importantly those who are influenced
:08:29. > :08:35.by it. I was pleased she mentioned PSHE, and isn't it true that having
:08:36. > :08:36.this on a good-quality bases in all schools will help promote body
:08:37. > :08:40.confidence but also keep young people safe from inappropriate
:08:41. > :08:46.relationships which often happen when children and young people have
:08:47. > :08:50.low self-esteem? Just because something is statutory, doesn't mean
:08:51. > :08:52.it has done well, and we want schools to put high-quality PSHE at
:08:53. > :09:05.the heart of their curriculum so that young people leave school
:09:06. > :09:15.prepared. Healthy, resilient, confident pupils are better placed
:09:16. > :09:18.to achieve academically. It is frequently thought that this is not
:09:19. > :09:23.a problem -- this is a problem that only affects young women, but it
:09:24. > :09:27.affect boys and young men as well. Can us she has not lost sight of
:09:28. > :09:31.that, and there was more about what the government is doing? He makes an
:09:32. > :09:45.excellent point, and there is even a name for this. It is called
:09:46. > :09:50.Manxiety. We are aware of this issue, and that is reflected in the
:09:51. > :09:55.use of steroids, which is why the government's body confidence work is
:09:56. > :10:04.blind to gender and is tackling young children, boys and girls,
:10:05. > :10:12.be better understanding of what our be better understanding of what our
:10:13. > :10:19.bodies are for. What will she do to promote breast-feeding in PSHE
:10:20. > :10:33.decide. We do not want to give them decide. We do not want to give them
:10:34. > :10:38.the prescriptive list on how they the prescriptive list on how they
:10:39. > :10:38.have to teach PSHE, but we really have to teach PSHE, but we
:10:39. > :10:39.want young people to leave school want young people to leave school
:10:40. > :10:39.and resilient, healthy attitude to and resilient, healthy attitude to
:10:40. > :10:41.life. Breast-feeding clearly is a strong part of that. Thanks to the
:10:42. > :10:47.hard-working teachers across the country, more pupils are getting the
:10:48. > :10:49.education they deserve. Girls outperform boys at primary and
:10:50. > :10:58.secondary schools on average. Girls however are less likely to pursue
:10:59. > :11:04.subjects like physics and maths. We are determined to tackle this. The
:11:05. > :11:14.fewer boys attained a star grades, fewer boys attained a star grades,
:11:15. > :11:20.what steps will she take to help boys achieve their full potential?
:11:21. > :11:25.This is a very important issue. There is more we need to do to
:11:26. > :11:27.address underachievement among boys, particularly among white
:11:28. > :11:33.working-class boys, I am sorry to say. The Pupil Premium worth ?2.5
:11:34. > :11:37.billion, which the Chancellor has committed two for the rest of this
:11:38. > :11:41.Parliament, a quarter of White British boys are eligible for this
:11:42. > :11:45.funding. We need to do more about explaining the young men about
:11:46. > :11:50.careers out there, why they need skills like a maths going forward,
:11:51. > :11:53.but also we need to think about parental engagement. A lot of
:11:54. > :11:58.messages will come from home that education is very valuable and boys
:11:59. > :12:07.school. Addressing the education school. Addressing the education
:12:08. > :12:17.also important is addressing the gap also important is addressing the gap
:12:18. > :12:22.in work. In Northern Ireland we had an event that showed that
:12:23. > :12:29.outnumber women to be the one in one outnumber women to be the one in one
:12:30. > :12:30.industry. I am delighted to hear industry. I am delighted to
:12:31. > :12:30.about the event, and that was the about the event, and that was the
:12:31. > :12:33.point I was making about needing to inspire young people about the
:12:34. > :12:35.careers out there, the importance of subjects, and maths A-level is now
:12:36. > :12:40.the most popular subject. We have also seen 12,000 more Stem A-level
:12:41. > :12:46.of the last Parliament, but there is of the last Parliament, but there is
:12:47. > :12:49.whether the disparity between the whether the disparity between the
:12:50. > :12:52.number of male and female teachers, especially in primary schools, may
:12:53. > :13:05.be having on the attainment level of boys? He makes an important point.
:13:06. > :13:10.We have an excellent workforce in our primary schools, 82% of teaching
:13:11. > :13:13.their is rated as good or outstanding. I would like to see
:13:14. > :13:23.more male teachers, but also more female head teachers in secondary
:13:24. > :13:28.schools. Making sure the blood supply of the country is safe is an
:13:29. > :13:35.absolute priority. Donor to federal for men who have sex with men was
:13:36. > :13:39.changed for a -- from lifetime to 12 months. It is again time to look at
:13:40. > :13:43.this issue, and Public Health England undertook an anonymous
:13:44. > :13:47.survey of donors, and the advisory committee on the safety of blood
:13:48. > :13:54.tissues and organs will review this in 2016. The safety of blood is
:13:55. > :14:00.paramount, but the Minister will know that when I met her in December
:14:01. > :14:07.last year to discuss this issue, there were two matters which I was
:14:08. > :14:07.from the agency for tissue and blood from the agency for tissue and blood
:14:08. > :14:11.safety saying that the word of gay safety saying that the word of gay
:14:12. > :14:19.people was somehow less valuable than the word of straight people,
:14:20. > :14:23.and that was disgraceful. The second point is that the Minister promised
:14:24. > :14:27.me that there would be survey work available at the time of the general
:14:28. > :14:32.election. When I asked a written question about it, she said that
:14:33. > :14:37.such survey work in fact is not being done, but she announces it is.
:14:38. > :14:40.I felt that she misled me at the time. Can she say more about how
:14:41. > :14:43.we're going to see equality in this we're going to see equality in this
:14:44. > :14:48.issue, because many clinicians feel that it is long overdue.
:14:49. > :14:55.We had a meeting and I can confirm that the public help England survey
:14:56. > :15:01.has been undertaken and is being analysed. -- health. I do not recall
:15:02. > :15:05.that an official made that point. The blood service does not
:15:06. > :15:10.discriminate on sexual orientation and lesbians are free to give blood
:15:11. > :15:14.and their donations are appreciated. The deferral period is based on
:15:15. > :15:17.sexual activity and applies to a number of groups, other than men who
:15:18. > :15:30.have sex with men. It will be reviewed in light of the PSHE
:15:31. > :15:33.survey. Question six. This government is clear that women
:15:34. > :15:37.should be confident they are safe in public spaces. We are bearing down
:15:38. > :15:42.on those whose criminal actions impinge on this right. We made
:15:43. > :15:48.progress. CPS data showed the highest number of convictions for
:15:49. > :15:51.crimes. We are refreshing the strategy, including providing more
:15:52. > :15:57.options for intervention to prevent harassment, assault and abuse.
:15:58. > :16:09.Commission is leading the campaign to make Bristol a 0 tolerance city
:16:10. > :16:17.for gender-based violence. How can other cities help? This government
:16:18. > :16:22.is committed to making sure that violence against women and girls is
:16:23. > :16:25.unacceptable and will not be tolerated in society and I look
:16:26. > :16:30.forward to hearing about the work being done in Bristol. Does my
:16:31. > :16:36.honourable friend agree that it is vital to provide protection for
:16:37. > :16:41.victims of stalking, often those also affected by domestic violence,
:16:42. > :16:47.sometimes targeted and followed from family courts, in order to bring
:16:48. > :16:51.more perpetrators to justice? She makes an important point. Testimony
:16:52. > :16:56.I have heard from victims of stalking shows the incredibly
:16:57. > :17:00.invasive nature of this crime and how damaging it is psychologically
:17:01. > :17:04.and emotionally, and we are determined that we will tackle this,
:17:05. > :17:12.including the introduction of the domestic abuse control offence which
:17:13. > :17:15.will commence shortly, to make sure all domestic abuse is an offence and
:17:16. > :17:23.the police have the weapons they need. Councillor Michael Pavey in
:17:24. > :17:31.Brent Council organised a fantastic event recently about women's safety,
:17:32. > :17:35.FGM and violence but he was disappointed that the audience was
:17:36. > :17:46.mostly female. Do you have any ideas how to increase the issue with men?
:17:47. > :17:51.You make an important point. Far too often I go to events where the
:17:52. > :17:53.audience is predominately if not exclusively the Melbourne yesterday
:17:54. > :17:57.I supported the White ribbon campaign which is a campaign for
:17:58. > :18:03.men. The more we can do with campaigns like that and more
:18:04. > :18:06.awareness raising, the more we can encourage people to know that this
:18:07. > :18:12.is an issue which affects all members of society no matter their
:18:13. > :18:16.gender. What assessment has been made of the impact of the two new
:18:17. > :18:27.specific offences introduced in 2012, stalking and stalking
:18:28. > :18:33.involving fear of violence? My honourable friend asks about the
:18:34. > :18:37.stalking offences. We have seen some success with and we are seeing more
:18:38. > :18:40.police forces using the stalking offences and making sure victims are
:18:41. > :18:46.protect it. It is so important that we protect victims and give them the
:18:47. > :18:49.support we need and make sure the perpetrators are dealt with in such
:18:50. > :18:55.a way that they cannot get to the AIDS victims, and they suffer the
:18:56. > :19:10.right penalties. -- gets to the victims. BMME women face high levels
:19:11. > :19:16.of abuse and research shows the incidence of crime against Muslims
:19:17. > :19:22.has increased. What steps can the Minister take to stamp out gender,
:19:23. > :19:28.afraid and racially motivated violence against women and girls?
:19:29. > :19:33.The honourable member will know that the government announced it is
:19:34. > :19:36.publishing new data to show racially motivated hate crime, but sickly
:19:37. > :19:43.Muslim hate crime, because we agree that we need to understand the scale
:19:44. > :19:47.of the problem and ensure that it is not acceptable. -- but especially.
:19:48. > :19:55.There can be no excuse for this hatred. I am grateful to the
:19:56. > :20:01.Minister. But she recognised that the women's sector is under enormous
:20:02. > :20:06.pressure, especially specialist organisations which support BMME
:20:07. > :20:11.women? A charity was forced to close earlier this month and a survey
:20:12. > :20:20.report 67% of its members are unsure about the future stability of its
:20:21. > :20:26.funding. Isn't it time for a proper sustainable strategy for victims of
:20:27. > :20:34.sexual violence rather than gimmicky short-term fixes like the tampon
:20:35. > :20:38.tax? I think it is a shame that the honourable lady is making that
:20:39. > :20:42.comment. While we are in the position where we have to pay that
:20:43. > :20:44.VAT, I think it is right, and I congratulate my honourable friend
:20:45. > :20:51.for Colchester for coming up with the idea, to provide additional
:20:52. > :20:54.support for services. It is not that many weeks ago that the party
:20:55. > :20:59.opposite voted for a 10% cut in please funding. This party has
:21:00. > :21:01.maintained please funding and that will make sure that victims of those
:21:02. > :21:14.horrendous crimes at the support they need to stop... That they need.
:21:15. > :21:17.We cannot have true opportunity without real quality. I am proud
:21:18. > :21:21.that we have more women in work, on wards, and the lowest pay gap on
:21:22. > :21:25.record across the UK but we must make progress and stop women will be
:21:26. > :21:31.the main beneficiaries of the increase in the new living wage and
:21:32. > :21:35.the rise in personal allowance. As she acknowledged earlier, the
:21:36. > :21:41.majority of care workers overwhelmingly are women, they face
:21:42. > :21:48.low pay, zero hour contracts, and as a consequence of financial pressures
:21:49. > :21:53.on the sector. The chief executive of care England was clear that the
:21:54. > :22:00.recent announcement will not let the funding gap in the care sector. --
:22:01. > :22:02.Care. One of the greatest Ings we can do is the introduction of the
:22:03. > :22:08.national living wage which will benefit proportionally more women
:22:09. > :22:14.than men, and it is something that employers will have to pay. Does my
:22:15. > :22:17.right honourable friend that people should be able to pursue careers
:22:18. > :22:23.without worrying about their sex, sexuality or sexual identity, and
:22:24. > :22:28.that everybody has the right pursue a full role in the workplace? She
:22:29. > :22:33.puts it really well. I want to answer that in the context of
:22:34. > :22:38.transgender people who faces a in the workplace and their lives, and
:22:39. > :22:41.that is why I am publishing guidance for employers and service providers
:22:42. > :22:44.to improve knowledge and understanding in supporting those
:22:45. > :22:49.who are transgender. An important step but I want to raise awareness
:22:50. > :22:58.of the issues and discrimination facing transgender people. With
:22:59. > :23:01.permission I would like to answer question eight and 11 together. The
:23:02. > :23:08.government is determined to increase the number of people studying stem
:23:09. > :23:11.subjects, and sickly goals. There are 12,000 more entrants over the
:23:12. > :23:22.last five years but more needs to be done. That is why we are improving
:23:23. > :23:31.the physics network, and holding a campaign to transform perceptions of
:23:32. > :23:34.science and. -- maths. I know the benefits of choosing stem subjects
:23:35. > :23:37.in schools and I am pleased this government is encouraging more girls
:23:38. > :23:42.into the area. Does the Minister agree that alongside the promotion
:23:43. > :23:46.of this, it is vital that young people receive good careers advice
:23:47. > :23:51.and guidance, particularly girls, so they can go on to succeed in the
:23:52. > :23:59.stem related industries? My honourable friend is right. We know
:24:00. > :24:02.girls often perform poorly at school but do not necessarily study the
:24:03. > :24:06.subject at a level and that is why we are delighted to set up the new
:24:07. > :24:09.enterprise company which will strengthen links between employers
:24:10. > :24:12.and schools, and hopefully inspire the next generation of engineers,
:24:13. > :24:22.showing them how interesting and varied careers in engineering can
:24:23. > :24:27.be. In September, a new engineering company opened and I am thrilled
:24:28. > :24:32.many local girls are part of the new intake. To what extent have industry
:24:33. > :24:39.been involved in the campaign to inspire more girls to consider a
:24:40. > :24:45.career in stem? Is the honourable lady outlined, it is a fantastic
:24:46. > :24:49.industry led and industry funded campaign and I know everybody is
:24:50. > :24:53.committed to inspiring the next generation of boys, but particularly
:24:54. > :24:58.girls into the importance of stem, and I experienced it first hand when
:24:59. > :25:06.I visited that in and the Ford motor company, the spiritual home of the
:25:07. > :25:16.fight for equal pay. -- visited that in Dagenham. The government has
:25:17. > :25:18.supported a range of initiatives to inspire young people into
:25:19. > :25:24.engineering, including many goals. In 2010, the number of women
:25:25. > :25:31.starting engineering apprenticeships has trebled to 4800 and I am pleased
:25:32. > :25:35.that the National physics laboratory has over half female apprentices. By
:25:36. > :25:41.protecting the science budget, we are ensuring a strong science base
:25:42. > :25:48.that will benefit the entire UK. I thank the Minister for his reply and
:25:49. > :25:51.I would urge the Minister to come to my constituency with me because
:25:52. > :25:58.there are exciting projects for the graduate may I also invite the
:25:59. > :26:02.Minister to a nursery school in my constituency which is promoting
:26:03. > :26:06.engineering for six and seven-year-olds by inviting our
:26:07. > :26:15.great inventor Trevor Bayliss to show them what can be done with
:26:16. > :26:23.Meccano sets. Will he join me in asking toy manufacturers in making
:26:24. > :26:29.these kits for five-year-olds and up? I am always delighted to go to
:26:30. > :26:33.Britain and welcome this successful initiative. Dripping is part of a
:26:34. > :26:38.bigger national story in which we have more women led businesses than
:26:39. > :26:52.ever before, around 1 million. -- Twickenham. It is an increase of
:26:53. > :26:56.170,000 over the number in 2010. It is important to show young girls and
:26:57. > :27:00.boys the fantastic careers that engineering provides. To do that,
:27:01. > :27:04.specifically for girls, we need engineering companies to engage with
:27:05. > :27:13.schools. What discussions is he having with ministers to ensure
:27:14. > :27:16.engineering company is confined schools to engage with? I have
:27:17. > :27:22.regular discussions with the Secretary of State for Education and
:27:23. > :27:25.the careers and enterprise company that is set up in DFB plays a
:27:26. > :27:39.coordinating role that the honourable member refers to -- DFE.
:27:40. > :27:44.My right honourable friend the Home Secretary asked Stephen Shore to
:27:45. > :27:49.review the detention of vulnerable individuals and his report and the
:27:50. > :27:52.government response will be published before the immigration
:27:53. > :27:59.Bill and blade is patted through Parliament. -- complete its passage.
:28:00. > :28:06.99 pregnant women were detained at the aisles words. My understanding
:28:07. > :28:13.is that there is still some cases, can you Expedia eight these cases?
:28:14. > :28:17.-- Yarlswood. I will make sure the Home Office looks at the cases you
:28:18. > :28:24.raise. Regnant women should not be routinely be detained but the Home
:28:25. > :28:30.Office is currently looking at the report and will publish it before
:28:31. > :28:33.the immigration Bill. I will agree with the honourable lady. This is a
:28:34. > :28:41.big problem but it is about the providers. What discussions will she
:28:42. > :28:46.have with providers, including G4S, about the detention of pregnant
:28:47. > :28:50.women? The Home Office has regular discussions with providers to make
:28:51. > :28:54.sure that appropriate treatment is given to all of honourable people
:28:55. > :29:02.held in detention, but as I will repeat, the Stephen sure review will
:29:03. > :29:05.be published shortly. -- Shaw. We are making real progress in
:29:06. > :29:14.increasing the number of women of public boards, with 44% of new
:29:15. > :29:15.appointment is made to women. Steps to increase diversity include
:29:16. > :29:22.streamlining applications, increasing awareness of
:29:23. > :29:27.opportunities via a sensual websites and social media. -- essential.
:29:28. > :29:32.There has been success in nonexecutive roles but much less
:29:33. > :29:40.success in decision-making, operational roles. Only 8% of FTSE
:29:41. > :29:45.directors are women in executive positions. The quotas are focusing
:29:46. > :29:52.on the wrong metric and can undermine progress in this key
:29:53. > :29:56.area. I completely agree with my honourable friend that there is an
:29:57. > :30:00.abundance of talented women who have the right skills and experience for
:30:01. > :30:04.these positions. Government and business much work together to level
:30:05. > :30:07.the playing field and encourage women to work their way up The
:30:08. > :30:12.Executive pipeline and that is why the government will establish a new
:30:13. > :30:21.review focusing on The Executive layer in FTSE 350 bodies.
:30:22. > :30:30.Statement, the Prime Minister. I said I would respond personally to
:30:31. > :30:33.the foreign affairs select committee report on extending British military
:30:34. > :30:37.today, and copies of my response today, and copies of my response
:30:38. > :30:41.have been made available to every member of the House. The committee
:30:42. > :30:46.produced a comprehensive report, which asked a series of important
:30:47. > :30:49.listen carefully to the questions listen carefully to the questions
:30:50. > :30:53.and views expressed by members on all sides of the House. I want to
:30:54. > :30:54.try to answer all of