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30 Most Recent Press Articles
One wish for political change by 2020
Written by Jo Swinson and published in House Magazine on Sun 1st Aug 2010
By 2020 I hope our economics will be focusing on what really matters - people's wellbeing, happiness and quality of life.
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Read "One wish for political change by 2020" in full
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Campaign For Body Confidence
Written by Jo Swinson and published in Lib Dem News on Fri 12th Mar 2010
This Week, on International Womens' Day, my colleague Lynne Featherstone and I launched the Liberal Democrats' Campaign for Body Confidence with a debate on the increasing pressure to conform to idealised body ideals. There was a fantastic atmosphere and some really impassioned contributions from the panellists which led to lively discussion between the panel and members of the audience.
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Read "Campaign For Body Confidence" in full
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Airbrushed images 'damage health and well-being'
Written by Jo Swinson and published in ePolitix on Mon 11th Jan 2010
The effect of media images on the body image of women and girls has sparked much debate over the past year, both in the media and among the public.
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Read "Airbrushed images 'damage health and well-being'" in full
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Brushed under the carpet?
Written by Jo Swinson and published in Healthy Bodies on Fri 8th Jan 2010
Flick through the pages of any magazine, and you will find heavily airbrushed images of thin models presenting a very narrow ideal of beauty.
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Read "Brushed under the carpet?" in full
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Beauty and the economic beast
Written by Jo Swinson and published in The Independent on Thu 17th Dec 2009
Who would have imagined that the airbrushing of models in advertising would have become a political talking point in 2009? This week, in response to a campaign by the Liberal Democrats, the Advertising Standards Authority ruled against an Olay Definity advert featuring Twiggy which used heavy airbrushing to sell beauty products. This is only the beginning.
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Read "Beauty and the economic beast" in full
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Opinion: No to All-Men Shortlists
Written by Jo Swinson and published in Lib Dem Voice on Mon 9th Nov 2009
At our 2001 party conference I donned a shocking pink t-shirt emblazoned with the slogan "I am not a token woman" and spoke in opposition to all-women shortlists.
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Read "Opinion: No to All-Men Shortlists" in full
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Radical change must now begin
Written by Jo Swinson and published in The Herald on Thu 5th Nov 2009
If one thing has become clear from the expenses scandal, it is that MPs should not make the rules about their own pay and conditions. It is therefore absolutely right that party leaders have agreed to accept the findings of Sir Christopher Kelly's review in full. It is a thorough piece of work, and packed with eminently sensible recommendations. While the media firestorm over MPs' expenses may have begun to subside, MPs must not think they can wriggle out of the necessary reforms. In fairness, most MPs I have spoken to are keen to get on with a new system based on the Kelly proposals, and start to rebuild trust in politics.
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Read "Radical change must now begin" in full
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My big idea to fix politics
Written by Vincent Cable, Jo Swinson, Norman Baker and John Curtice and published in The Guardian, Comment is Free on Sun 20th Sep 2009
These are our ideas on how to fix politics ahead of the Guardian's debate at the Liberal Democrats party conference.
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Read "My big idea to fix politics" in full
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Bridging the gender gap
Written by Jo Swinson and published in Guardian.co.uk Comment is Free on Sat 12th Sep 2009
I welcome the report released this week by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) into sex discrimination in the City, even if its findings are not at all surprising. It is no secret that bankers' bonuses do not reflect a realistic appraisal of their performance, or that the City is hardly the most welcoming place for women to work. However, it is not just the City, or even the private sector, where women earn significantly less than men. Research carried out by the Liberal Democrats recently discovered that the average hourly pay of women working for the Treasury is 26.5% lower than that of male employees. Only 29% of full-time senior civil servants are women, and the weighted median gender pay gap for full-time staff across the civil service is 15.3%.
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Read "Bridging the gender gap" in full
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Less airbrushing, more reality
Written by Jo Swinson and published in Guardian.co.uk Comment is Free on Wed 5th Aug 2009
Open any magazine or newspaper, and you're bombarded with images of "perfect" women, advertising everything from cars to alcohol, deodorant to face cream.
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Read "Less airbrushing, more reality" in full
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Women in politics
Written by Jo Swinson and published in No 1 Magazine on Sat 30th May 2009
On the doorsteps, I often find that women are more interested than men in discussing political issues. Community and voluntary groups rely on the activism of women getting involved. While women certainly care about politics and are willing to get stuck in working in their local area, we still have far too few women in politics. Just 1 in 5 MPs are women, and only around a third of local Councillors. In my experience there are several factors which put women off politics.
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Read "Women in politics" in full
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A little less Easter Egg packaging, a little more chocolate please
Written by Jo Swinson on Tue 14th Apr 2009
Doing the weekly shop at this time of year has an additional challenge, I always find. Go into any supermarket and you'll see Easter Egg boxes piled high, tempting children and adults alike. So far I've managed to resist the lure of the crème eggs laid out tantalisingly at the tills, but I'm sure it's only a matter of time before I cave in.
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Read "A little less Easter Egg packaging, a little more chocolate please" in full
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Parliament on YouTube
Written by Jo Swinson and published in New Statesman on Mon 2nd Mar 2009
"MPs are talking, not hearing, online" was the BBC News headline last week about a Hansard Society report into how MPs are using new technology to connect with the public.
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Read "Parliament on YouTube" in full
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Transparency vital for MPs' expenses
Written by Jo Swinson and published in Scottish Mail on Sunday on Sun 25th Jan 2009
This week's MPs' expenses row was both depressing and uplifting. Depressing because yet again it seemed that fellow MPs in the House of Commons were intent upon shrouding our affairs in secrecy. This kind of behaviour fuels the negative perception of politics that is so damaging to our democracy. Ultimately uplifting, however, because in the space of less than a week, tens of thousands of people joined forces to demand transparency from our elected representatives. The Government's humiliating climbdown on this issue was not just a victory for openness, but for people power too.
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Read "Transparency vital for MPs' expenses" in full
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Economist to Superhero?
Written by Jo Swinson and published in New Statesman on Mon 15th Sep 2008
The East Dunbartonshire MP and foreign affairs spokeswoman on juggling her commitments at conference - from parties to training sessions to the odd speech. Oh and some words of praise for fellow blogger, Vince Cable
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Be happy, Olympians. Aim low
Written by Jo Swinson and published in Guardian.co.uk Comment is Free on Mon 11th Aug 2008
Our happiness often comes down to the comparisons we make. This is why it is sad that sections of the British media and, I'm sorry to say, politicians, ramp up expectations before major sporting events. Whilst it is great that there is enthusiasm for our medal prospects in Beijing and we will all be right behind our Olympic team, we should not seek to burden our athletes with excessive expectations.
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Read "Be happy, Olympians. Aim low" in full
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Backdating road tax is retrograde
Written by Jo Swinson and published in Guardian.co.uk Comment is Free on Mon 4th Aug 2008
Unusually, the Environmental Audit Committee could not reach a consensus for today's report, Vehicle Excise Duty as an environmental tax. Those of us frustrated with the government's misuse of green taxes took the step of issuing a minority report.
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Read "Backdating road tax is retrograde" in full
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A 21st Century Union
Written by Jo Swinson MP and published in House Magazine on Thu 1st Feb 2007
A lot has changed in 300 years. When you stop and think, it's actually harder to come up with things that haven't changed since the Act of Union was passed in 1707.
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Comment piece on young peoples attitudes to violence against women
Written by Jo Swinson MP and published in joswinson.org.uk on Fri 8th Dec 2006
The days of women being given a slap for disrespecting the men in their lives should be nothing but a bad memory and a harrowing scene from a Charles Dickens' screen adaptation. Male assault of woman should be nothing but a distasteful reminder of when women were no more than chattels and the possessions of male relatives, acceptably controlled by through violent behaviour.
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Read "Comment piece on young peoples attitudes to violence against women" in full
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Letter to The Guardian regarding Women in Politics
Written by Jo Swinson MP and published in The Guardian on Fri 6th Oct 2006
It is right and timely that Martin Kettle (The amazing gender gap, October 3) should ask why there are so few women at the top in politics. Perhaps for the first time, the three major parties agree that the under-representation of women is not just an affront; it undermines democracy. Mr Kettle's conclusions about the relative competence of our female MPs could, however, have benefited from a more rigorous analysis. It is not the number of outstanding female MPs that is disproportionately low, but the total number, at just 19%. The pool from which future leaders, ministers and shadow ministers are drawn is substantially smaller for women than for men.
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Read "Letter to The Guardian regarding Women in Politics" in full
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Speech on Scottish Achievements, UK Liberal Democrat Conference 2006
Written by Jo Swinson MP and published in scotlibdems.org on Tue 19th Sep 2006
Scottish Liberal Democrats have delivered the popular and clear benefits of home rule. It has been a mix of ministerial power and radical legislation. Crucially, we have done what we said we would. People can see the difference we have made in Scotland and the difference with Labour governing on their own in London.
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Read "Speech on Scottish Achievements, UK Liberal Democrat Conference 2006" in full
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"Scottishness" - Reflections of Identity
Written by Jo Swinson MP and published in Holyrood Magazine on Wed 30th Aug 2006
Ironically, I tend to feel most Scottish when I'm not in Scotland. Living and working in Scotland, surrounded by other Scots, Scottishness is often something which you take for granted. It's just a given, underpinning society but not necessarily talked about unless there's some major sporting event, Burns' night, St Andrew's Day or similar.
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Read ""Scottishness" - Reflections of Identity" in full
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Making a difference - Liberal Democrats with a bright future
Written by Jo Swinson MP and published in Parliamentary Monitor Magazine on Fri 18th Aug 2006
Scotland is a healthy place to be a Liberal Democrat. The party is strong north and south of the border. As Executive partners in Government Liberal Democrats have demonstrated not only our ability to govern, but the real difference that our policies can make when taken from drawing board to practical application. At Westminster, we are now Scotland's second party with both votes and seats. The by-election success in the Labour heartland of Dunfermline and West Fife this year validates our position.
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Read "Making a difference - Liberal Democrats with a bright future" in full
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Reforms must encourage personal contact
Written by Jo Swinson MP and published in New Politics Network on Mon 10th Jul 2006
The issue of party funding cannot be separated from party spending. The amount of money spent at general elections seems a complete anathema to most people.
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Read "Reforms must encourage personal contact" in full
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Jo's tricky question stumped Tony Blair
Written by Patrick McFall and published in The Sunday Post on Sun 16th Apr 2006
DAVID CAMERON is desperate to inject more vim, vigour and downright youthfulness into the Conservative Party. But over in the Lib-Dem corner sits an ambitious young Scot who many pundits reckon is already holding all the cards.
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Read "Jo's tricky question stumped Tony Blair" in full
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