Ruth Davidson wants more women MPs

Ruth Davidson has called for political parties to do more to promote women '“ and admitted the Tories are 'behind the curve' on the issue.

The Scottish Conservative leader has also warned that the sexual harassment scandal of the past few weeks could deter women from entering politics.

Ms Davidson was speaking at a Women2Win fund-raising event in London last night and said greater gender equality in politics will lead to “a more balanced culture” where harassment is challenged.

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Women2Win was set up by Prime Minister Theresa May in 2005 to ensure more women were selected by the Conservatives in winnable seats across the UK.

Ms Davidson said: “In truth, my party is behind the curve. With a third of female MPs in the Commons, less than a quarter of the Conservative group are women. While this may constitute a significant improvement – in 2010 it was less than a sixth – it shows how far we have still to go.”

Ms Davidson re-iterated her opposition to quotas for women, in favour of “long term solutions to the problem of helping women enter and prosper in politics.”