BRIGHTON and Hove Labour Party has released a manifesto pledging to fight inequality against women.

The announcement came on International Women’s Day as the party seeks to address issues that affect women, especially those who are poor and marginalised.

The pledges are:

  • To protect the local authority investment in independent women’s domestic and sexual services which are LGBT inclusive
  • To maintain a specialist women’s hostel to help women who are rough sleeping to escape homelessness
  • To support the campaign to acknowledge misogyny as an official hate crime
  • To maintain at least 50-50 women in the most senior leadership positions in Labour. The Fawcett report recommendations require political leadership to be fully implemented. This pledge demonstrates the party’s commitment to create a local government democracy fit for the future.
  • To end the negative impact of period poverty for schoolgirls by ensuring the Red Box project is in place in every school in the city and to campaign for national public funding
  • To continue to oppose austerity which disproportionately affects women. The party supports the Waspi (Women Against State Pension Inequality) campaign to return pensions to women affected by the changes to state pension ages without adequate notice and welfare reforms that penalise women such as the “rape clause”.

Danielle Cornish-Spencer, a member of the Labour women’s forum and candidate for Hanover and Elm Grove ward, said she was delighted to work with women in the city to develop the policies.

She said: “There are still misogynistic attitudes towards women and it is an issue of society.

“However, I do feel very privileged to be in a party that supports women’s rights and pledges to fight against inequality.

“I work globally to promote women’s rights and put forward policies which would, hopefully, make a positive difference.

“We don’t just work within the party to develop the manifesto, but we also worked with women in the community who have put their heart into this.

“We have three strong women who are candidates for the Hanover and Elm Grove ward, with Emma Daniel and Eleanor Humphrey.

“I feel very confident.

“Although some people have left the party, in a way it’s helped us become more united and to work towards our goals.”

The manifesto also states: “Women who rough sleep avoid generic housing services as they do not feel safe or welcome.

“Therefore their lives are not improving. We opened a women’s only service in 2018.

“The council has just invested £3,600 to support the Red Box project in secondary schools in 2019.

“However, this must be considered a starting point. Sanitary wear should be freely available in schools.”