Parliamentary Politics and Polarisation Around Gender: Tackling Inequalities in Political Groups in the European Parliament

Abstract

Gender equality has become strongly contested in contemporary European politics. The European Parliament (EP) is not insulated from these developments. This chapter analyses the internal functioning of the parliament’s political groups from the perspective of gender equality. Rather than focusing on policies and policy-making processes, the chapter analyses the ways in which the political groups are perceived as gendered actors by MEPs and staff. This involves examining both remaining gender inequalities, and the practices for advancing gender equality at the political group level. The chapter draws on a large qualitative dataset of 135 interviews with MEPs and political staff conducted in 2018–2021. The findings show that despite differences between the political groups, gendered inequalities are persistent across the political spectrum. The chapter discusses how the political groups show different levels of commitment to gender equality and employ different practices in advancing it with potential for democratic representation and political work.