The Scottish government has announced that, for the first time, more women than men were appointed to the boards of regulated public bodies in 2015, with 54% of all appointees being female although overall representation is much lower across boards generally
It says that since the launch of its Partnership for Change 50/50 by 2020 campaign in June 2015, a number of public bodies in Scotland have achieved gender balance.
In spite of all this, there is still significant gender inequality on public boards, with women comprising only 36% of board places and 21% of the current board chairs.
Roseanna Cunningham, cabinet secretary for fair work, said: ‘While this marks significant progress we are not complacent as there is significant work still to do. We will continue to try and make sure that all of our public bodies that have a key role to play in our society are as representative and diverse as possible.
‘We are committed to making sure that Scotland has no ceiling for ambition and talent and that we create opportunities for all to flourish.’
Bill Thomson, the commissioner for ethical standards in public life in Scotland, said: ‘I welcome the progress being made towards gender equality in public appointments. Whilst there are clearly still challenges to be met, the figures for 2015 suggest that changes in appointment practices are beginning to have a positive effect on board diversity.’
