Bradford Council’s Liberal Democrat leader Jeanette Sunderland is concerned that highly-capable female councillors are being overlooked for the Council’s top positions.

Almost a third of the 90 seats on the Council are occupied by women, yet no females sit on the decision-making executive of seven Labour councillors.

The Conservative shadow executive consists of six men and one woman. Baildon councillor Val Townend was appointed to shadow the environment portfolio at the Council’s annual meeting this week.

None of the seven scrutiny committees are chaired by women, although three have female deputy chairmen.

Coun Sunderland, whose group has four female councillors out of 11, said: “This Council needs more women in influential positions. I don’t believe that there are no women thought capable of chairing a committee.”

Different life experiences of both genders should be reflected in the Council’s plans and policy-making, she said, but the Council was becoming “skewed from the male-perspective” and was beginning to look like an all-men’s club dominated by the male view.

Coun Sunderland said: “Coun Greenwood holds up the election of two women as the Lord Mayor and Deputy as a real celebration of progress and how the district has changed. The truth of the matter is that in the 105 years that the district has had a Lord Mayor, there have only been nine in total.

“There’s a real lack of women’s voices. I would be willing to talk to and mentor any women who are active in their communities, but are put off standing for election because they see a male-dominated institution.”

Labour’s Vanda Greenwood (Shipley) said: “That’s absolutely utter nonsense. Yes, we have got a Woman’s Group. We meet openly. There’s nothing secretive about it and it’s very active. Coun Greenwood often speaks at our meetings.”

Council leader, Coun Greenwood, whose group has 15 women councillors out of 44, said: “Coun Sunderland may notice that the majority of candidates that took seats off other parties in the election were women. The majority of new Labour candidates elected were women.”

Coun Glen Miller, leader of the Conservative Group, which has seven female members out of 29, said: “The Conservative Group is a meritocracy and posts will continue to be allocated on that basis. No member of the group will ever be denied a position of responsibility due to their sex."

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